Asia

  
Maria Ressa, Nobel laureate and co-founder of Rappler, displays documents showing the court's decision to allow the news site to keep operating, seated by her lawyer Francis Lim, at a news conference in Rappler's office in the Philippine capital Manila on August 9.

Philippine court overturns Rappler shutdown order

Chiang Mai, August 9, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes a Philippine court decision reversing a 2018 regulator’s order to shut down the independent news site Rappler, which was co-founded in 2012 by Nobel laureate Maria Ressa and reported critically on former President Rodrigo Duterte. “The Court of Appeal’s decision to void a 2018 government agency shutdown…

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Pakistani journalist Usman Khan reporting from a July protest in Baluchistan over enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings.

Pakistani journalist in hiding after police raid his home over protest reports

New York, August 7, 2024—Pakistani police have raided the home of digital journalist Usman Khan three times, forcing him into hiding to avoid detention for his coverage of protests over alleged human rights abuses in southwestern Baluchistan province. “Pakistani police must immediately cease their attempts to detain independent journalist Usman Khan and allow the media…

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A man speaks on the radio while another man watches from the sound booth.

Taliban suspends broadcast licenses of 14 media outlets in Afghanistan

New York, August 6, 2024—The Afghan Telecom Regulatory Authority (ATRA) suspended 17 broadcast licenses for 14 media outlets on July 22 in eastern Nangarhar, one of Afghanistan’s most populous provinces. “Taliban officials must immediately reverse their decision to suspend the broadcast licenses of 14 active media outlets in Nangarhar province that collectively reach millions of…

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People celebrate the resignation the Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as they take over her official residence, Ganabhaban, in the capital of Dhaka on August 5, 2024. Dozens of Journalists were attacked while covering the protests preceding her resignation. (Reuters/Mohammad Ponir Hossain)

CPJ urges Bangladesh to protect journalists as protests oust PM

New York, August 5, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the latest attacks on dozens of journalists covering anti-government protests in Bangladesh and calls on the country’s interim government to urgently ensure the safety of the media following Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s resignation on Monday. “All sides in Bangladesh must ensure that journalists can report…

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Cyberattackers are knocking out media sites around the world with an emerging censorship strategy that uses inexpensive tools, masks attackers' identities, and is very difficult to defend against. (Photo illustration: CPJ; source image: Reuters/Heinz-Peter Bader)

Cyberattackers use easily available tools to target media sites, threaten press freedom

When exiled Russian news website Meduza was hit with a flood of internet traffic in mid-April, it set off alarm bells among the staff as the deluge blocked publishing for more than four hours and briefly rendered the site inaccessible for some readers. It was the largest distributed denial of service attack (DDoS) attack in…

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An Afghan woman in Kandahar on July 28.

Taliban morality police detain Kandahar radio presenter Mohammad Ibrahim Mohtaj

New York, July 29, 2024—Taliban authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Mohammad Ibrahim Mohtaj, who was detained leaving his office on July 27 by agents of the Taliban’s provincial Directorate of Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. Mohtaj, a broadcast manager and presenter with the independent…

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Anti-quota protesters clash with police and supporters of the ruling Awami League supporters in the Rampura area of Dhaka, Bangladesh, on July 18, 2024. At least three journalists have been killed covering the protests. (Reuters/Mohammad Ponir Hossain)

Bangladeshi journalists killed in quota protests as reporters attacked, internet blocked

Update: Since publication of this report, CPJ has learned that Md. Shakil Hossen was killed while attending a Dhaka student rally in his personal capacity, not reporting on a Gazipur protest as initial reports indicated. New York, July 26, 2024– The Committee to Protect Journalists has called on Bangladesh authorities to investigate the killings of…

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An Afghan boy selling eggs in Kabul on June 3.

Taliban intelligence agents detain culture journalist Sayed Rahim Saeedi

New York, July 22, 2024—Afghan authorities should immediately and unconditionally release journalist Sayed Rahim Saeedi, who was detained by the Taliban’s General Directorate of Intelligence agents in the capital Kabul on July 14, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. Saeedi, an editor and producer with ANAR Media YouTube channel, was detained along with Sayed…

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CCTV footage shows two men who were on a motorbike and opened fire on Pakistani journalist Malik Hassan Zaib while inside a car on July 14.

Malik Hassan Zaib becomes 7th journalist slain in Pakistan this year

Update: Following the publication of this alert, the local press freedom group Pakistan Press Foundation and the Pakistani newspaper The News International reported that Zaib was targeted over a personal dispute. New York, July 16, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by a surge in the killing of journalists in Pakistan, as the July…

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Rahul Pandita

India court delays nearly $90K defamation order against journalist Rahul Pandita

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has stayed an order requiring journalist Rahul Pandita to pay INR7.5 million (US$89,800) in defamation compensation to senior paramilitary officer Harpreet Singh Sidhu, according to news reports. This stay will remain in effect until the next hearing, scheduled for October 21. On March 5, an appellate court ordered Pandita,…

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