Mortaza Behboudi

Mortaza Behboudi is a Franco-Afghan war reporter and documentary filmmaker. Recognized for his commitment to covering conflict zones, he was named in Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2019 in the Media category for his work with Guiti News. In 2022, he received both the Bayeux Calvados-Normandy War Correspondents Prize and the Prix Varenne for his reporting.

On January 7, 2023, while on assignment in Afghanistan, he was detained by Taliban intelligence, specifically the Haqqani network. Having reported extensively from the country since their takeover in 2021, his arrest underscored the increasing threats to press freedom. After ten months in captivity, he was released on October 18, 2023. During his captivity, in April 2023, he was awarded the Freedom of Expression Award by the International Association of Press Clubs, alongside Polish journalist Andrzej Poczobut.

In 2022, he was the only European journalist to go undercover in Iran to cover the Women, Life, Freedom movement. He recently published the investigative book Femme, vie, liberté. Un reporter infiltré au cœur de la révolte iranienne.

Events