Enab Baladi

Enab Baladi (Arabic: عنب بلدي, lit. 'Grapes of My Country') is a Syrian nonprofit media organization that publishes a newspaper with the same name, in Arabic and English. It was established in Darayya, Syria, in 2011, and is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.^[2]

Enab Baladi
عنب بلدي

Logo with Motto
The 24 January 2025 front page of Enab Baladi issue #674
Type	Weekly newspaper
Format	Tabloid
Owner	Enab Baladi - Nonprofit Media Organization
Editor-in-chief	Jawad Sharbaji
Managing editor	Ammar Ziadeh, Bilal Abo Laban
Founded	2011; 14 years ago (2011)
Language	Arabic English
Headquarters	Darayya, Syria (2011–2013) Istanbul, Turkey (2013–2025) Damascus, Syria (2025–present)[1]
Country	Syria
Circulation	7,000 (Weekly)
Website	www.enabbaladi.org english.enabbaladi.net
Free online archives	en.syrianprints.org/issues?agency=1
Media of Syria List of newspapers

History and profile

Enab Baladi newspaper was launched in 2011 by a group of citizen journalists and activists named (Nabil Waleed Sharbaji, Ahmad Waleed Helmi, Jawad Sharbaji, Ammar Ziadeh, Mohammad Dalain, Rudaina Khoulani, Majd Ezzat Sharbaji, Manal Shakhashirou, Kholoud Helmi, Bahaa Ziadeh, Moawia Sharbaji, Muhammad Koraytem, Afraa Sharbaji, Ghada Al Abbar, Fadi Dabbas, Fadi Sharbaji, Noor Al Tall, Anas Al Saqqa, Rasha Khoulani, Moataz Murad, Mohammad Khaled Shehadeh, Mostafa Reesha, Mohammad Fares Shehadeh, Azhar Sharbaji) ^[3] from Daraya, a Syrian town in the suburbs of Damascus. On January 29, 2012, its first issue was published. Since then, it has been printed each week on Sundays, with one two-week stoppage in August 2012 due to the Darayya massacre committed by Assad forces.

Since its establishment during the first year of the Syrian uprising, Enab Baladi (EB) has focused on promoting peaceful resistance methods to counter the sectarian and violent narratives of the Syrian regime. EB coverage included the human rights violations perpetrated by the Syrian regime, as well as the inception of the nascent Syrian civil society, in addition to various news and topics in the fields of politics, economy, and social affairs.

Growth

The newspaper evolved from an amateur-run organization into one of the most prominent Syrian media organizations, according to the BBC Syria profile page.^[4]

Currently, Enab Baladi produces a weekly newspaper, an online news service in Arabic and English, and a print media archive.^[5][6][7][8] These projects are supported by a network of reporters and journalists who provide reports from the ground in Syria.

Enab Baladi has drawn the attention of several local and international media channels. Its story appeared in Der Spiegel,^[9] The Guardian,^[10] and AFP News,^[11] among others. The French magazine Elle also published an article about EB's women's team.^[12] As of May 2015^[update], approximately ten women worked as reporters, editors, and translators for the organization. The article tells the story of one of them, Kholoud Waleed, and highlights the role that women played in establishing the newspaper, the challenges they faced during their work as citizen journalists in Syria, and the success they achieved.

Partnerships, alliances, and coalitions

Enab Baladi built relationships with several international organizations, including the National Endowment for Democracy, Internews, Free Press Unlimited, European Endowment for Democracy, l'Association de Soutien aux Médias Libres, Adopt a Revolution, L'agence française de coopération médias, Norwegian People's Aid, and International Media Support.^[13]

Enab Baladi also joined several alliances and coalitions:

• The Ethical Journalism for Syria Alliance (EJSA), which is funded by Free Press Unlimited, has partnered with over thirty Syrian independent media organizations. It aims to restore and promote the fundamental rights of freedom of speech, thought, and expression in Syria through a gender-sensitive, multi-level approach.^[14]
• The International Coalition of Sites of Conscience (ICSC), which focuses on documenting the oral heritage of the Syrian conflict.^[15]
• The Syrian Network for Printed Media (SNP), which has partnered with four other Syrian independent newspapers to print and distribute news both inside and outside the country.^[16]
• The Syrian Regional Program (SRP), which provides media exposure for Local Councils in Syria, and the Assistance Coordination Unit (ACU), that produces multimedia reports on local initiatives across the country.^[17]

After the fall of the Assad regime

In a 2024 interview with German cultural magazine Kulturaustausch, Enab Baladi co-founder Kholoud Helmi described the organisation’s ongoing work as an attempt to provide “an alternative to propaganda and hate” in post-conflict Syria. According to Helmi, the organisation’s reopening of an office in Damascus, the resumption of its print edition, and the launch of journalist-training programmes are intended to maintain a local presence and safeguard spaces for ethical reporting. She noted that the publication continues to face financial and operational difficulties following the withdrawal of some international donors. After President Trump stopped funding for Syria, Enab Baldai lost USAID-related funding, such as that from the International Research & Exchanges Board (IREX).^[18]

Another challenge are heightened security concerns for staff. Not all of the editors in Turkey, Germany and elsewhere, who are part of the organization's extended team, are planning to return to Syria. The Ministry of Information has received copies of the newspaper, and ministers as well as other officials in the government have largely been helpful and answering most questions. Despite operating with what Helmi termed a “margin of freedom,” she cautioned that this situation could change if government restrictions should tighten.^[18]

Awards

The newspaper has won two awards through its co-founders: Majd Sharbaji, who received the U.S. State Department’s Women of Courage Award, and Kholoud Helmi, who received the 2015 Anna Politkovskaya Award.^[19][20]