In our last meeting in June of 2025 with the staff of International Media Support Organization (IMS), which consisted of Henrik Andersen, Head of the Iraq Program and his accompanying delegation, we thanked the organization and its team for more than 10 years of financial support.

"We are really concerned about this situation. We hope it will be timely, and we can work together again," said Henrik Andersen, head of the Iraq program.

Metro sent a letter of thanks to the organization, which read:

Dear colleagues from the International Media Support,

We extend our thanks, gratitude and appreciation to you for your continued support over the past years to Metro Center for Defending Journalists’ Rights.

I am pleased to express, on my own behalf and on behalf of the Metro Center team, my sincere feelings of gratitude for the constant support you have provided us over the past years.

Your firm commitment to freedom of the press and the protection of media workers has had a great impact in enhancing our capabilities and enabling us to carry out our mission in an extremely challenging environment.

Although your financial support to us has stopped, which we hope will be temporary, the spirit that you have instilled in our work will continue to exist and we are working hard to overcome this stage.

We acknowledge that your support was not only financial but also served as inspiration for our continuation in an environment in which free media is besieged and laws are used as a tool to silence voices.

Our beloved colleagues, you care about informed partnerships that respect local contexts and support positive change. We hope to resume our projects soon, and look forward to continuing this partnership with you, which embodies the meaning of global solidarity for a free press that seeks truth, justice, and human dignity.

Rahman Gharib

Head of Metro Center