Pakistani journalist Imran Riaz Khan arrested for alleged hate speech
New York, February 2, 2023 – Pakistan authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Imran Riaz Khan and cease targeting journalists in retaliation for their commentary on the military, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. In the early hours of Thursday, February 2, officers with Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency arrested Khan, an anchor with…
Bangladeshi journalist Raghunath Kha arrested, allegedly electrocuted in custody
New York, January 25, 2023 – Bangladesh authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Raghunath Kha and investigate allegations that he was electrocuted and beaten in police custody, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. At around 11 a.m. on Monday, January 23, plainclothes police officers detained Kha, a correspondent for the privately owned broadcaster…
Russia orders journalists Ilya Makarov and Maksim Litvinchuk detained for 15 days
Paris, January 25, 2023 — Russian authorities should immediately release journalists Ilya Makarov and Maksim Litvinchuk and let all members of the press work freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On January 19, police in Moscow detained the two reporters for the independent online outlet Sota.Vision while they reported on a local government…
Afghan journalist Khairullah Parhar detained by Taliban since January 9
New York, January 23, 2023 – Taliban authorities must immediately release Afghan journalist Khairullah Parhar and stop arbitrarily detaining members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. On January 9, agents with the Taliban’s General Directorate of Intelligence detained Parhar, a reporter and chair of the Nangarhar Sports Journalists Association in Kabul,…
Turkish journalist Sezgin Kartal arrested for alleged PKK membership
Istanbul, January 18, 2023 – Turkish authorities should immediately release journalist Sezgin Kartal and stop filing terrorism charges against members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On January 10, police raided Kartal’s Istanbul home and took him into custody; on January 13, a local court ordered him to be held in…
Authorities in Tigray release 3 journalists, 2 others remain in detention
Nairobi, January 17, 2023—In response to news reports that authorities in the northern Ethiopian state of Tigray recently released three employees of the broadcaster Tigrai TV but continue to hold two more in custody, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement calling for the remaining staffers’ release: “While it is a great relief…
Pakistani journalist Shahid Aslam arrested in leak investigation
New York, January 17, 2023 – Pakistan authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Shahid Aslam and allow the media to freely and independently report on military officials, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On January 13, Federal Investigation Agency officers in Lahore arrested Aslam, a special correspondent for the privately owned broadcaster BOL…
Iranian journalists face long prison terms, lashes, and harsh restrictions over protest coverage
Washington, D.C., January 11, 2023 – Iranian authorities must drop all charges filed against journalists in retaliation for their coverage of protests in the country and stop handing down harsh prison sentences to members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. Iranian authorities have arrested at least 88 journalists since September 2022,…
Benin journalist Virgile Ahouansè held for 2 days, charged with spreading false news
Dakar, January 10, 2023 — Beninese authorities should drop the false news charges against journalist Virgile Ahouansè and ensure that members of the press do not face legal harassment for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On December 19, an officer with the police criminal brigade called Ahouansè, news director of the…
South Sudan security forces detain 6 state media employees
Nairobi, January 6, 2023—South Sudanese authorities should immediately and unconditionally release all journalists detained this week and ensure the press can work freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Tuesday, January 3, agents with the National Security Service detained six journalists with the state-run South Sudan Broadcasting Corporation, according to multiple media reports…