Four journalists believed killed
November 19, 2001—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is outraged by the apparent murder of four journalists who were seized yesterday while traveling between Jalalabad and Kabul. The journalists have been identified by their news organizations as Azizullah Haidari, an Afghan-born photographer for the Reuters news agency; Harry Burton, an Australian television cameraman for Reuters;…
U.S. AIRSTRIKE DESTROYS AL-JAZEERA OFFICE IN KABUL
New York, November 13, 2001—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply concerned about the destruction of the Kabul offices of Al-Jazeera, the Qatari-based, Arabic language satellite television station. The building that housed the station was destroyed by a missile fired by a U.S. warplane early Tuesday morning, according to international news reports. No injuries…
CPJ MOURNS THREE JOURNALISTS KILLED ON ASSIGNMENT
New York, November 12, 2001—CPJ is deeply saddened by the deaths of three colleagues killed while reporting in northern Afghanistan. Johanne Sutton, a reporter for Radio France Internationale; Pierre Billaud, a reporter for Radio Television Luxembourg; and Volker Handloik, a free-lance reporter on assignment for the German news magazine Stern, were killed on the evening…
Four journalists jailed for more than a month on blasphemy charges
New York, July 11, 2001 — CPJ is dismayed that local authorities in Abbottabad have not dropped blasphemy charges brought against journalists from the Urdu-language daily Mohasib, even though officials at both the provincial and federal levels have issued statements noting that these charges are groundless. On May 29, Mohasib published an article entitled “The…
Japanese journalist detained in Taliban territory
November 1, 2001 The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is very concerned by the detention of Japanese journalist Daigen Yanagida in Taliban-controlled territory. Yanagida was arrested on October 22 in Asadabad, near the border with Pakistan, and is currently being held in Jalalabad for questioning, according to Japanese and international news sources. Yanagida was…
Al-Jazeera reporter expelled by Northern Alliance
New York, November 8, 2001—Soldiers of the opposition Northern Alliance expelled a reporter for the influential Arabic-language news channel Al-Jazeera from Afghanistan yesterday. An Al-Jazeera source told CPJ that the reporter, Ali Al-Arab, was escorted to the Tajik border on the afternoon of November 7 and advised to return “in a time of peace.” Al-Arab…
French journalist Peyrard released
November 5, 2001—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) welcomes the release of French journalist Michel Peyrard, who was imprisoned for 25 days by Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban militia. CPJ remains concerned about the continued detention of Peyrard’s guides, Pakistani nationals Mukkaram Khan and Mohammad Irfan, who remain in Taliban custody in Jalalabad.
CPJ awardee receives nine-year sentence
New York, November 2, 2001—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemns the nine-year prison sentence handed down to journalist Jiang Weiping by the Dalian Intermediate Court in Liaoning Province. The sentence was confirmed by CPJ sources, but has not yet been publicly announced. In a secret trial held on September 5, CPJ International Press Freedom…