Journalists detained in Bahrain, Egypt
New York, March 30, 2011–A CNN crew was detained today in Manama while interviewing a prominent Bahraini human rights defender, according to a Twitter posting by the network and a CPJ interview. The detentions come amid a recent series of repressive actions by the Bahraini government, which included today’s arrest of a well-known blogger. Anti-press…
Iraqi journalist killed in siege of Tikrit government building
New York, March 29, 2011–The Committee to Protect Journalists mourns the death of Sabah al-Bazi, a correspondent for Al-Arabiya and contributor to Reuters, CNN, and other international news outlets, who was killed today when gunmen wearing military uniforms seized control of a provincial government building in Tikrit.
Hamas attacks Gaza news bureaus; Yemen ousts reporters
New York, March 19, 2011–Hamas security forces raided media bureaus, assaulted journalists, and confiscated journalistic materials in Gaza today, punctuating another day of anti-press attacks in the restive region. In Yemen, authorities expelled two Al-Jazeera correspondents, continuing a pattern of ousting international reporters. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns these attacks on journalists and the…
Bahrain expels CNN reporter, detains WSJ correspondent
New York, March 17, 2011–Bahraini authorities expelled a CNN reporter and briefly detained another international reporter on Wednesday amid an intensified crackdown on political unrest. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the Bahraini government’s ongoing obstruction of news media and calls for authorities to allow journalists to cover this story of international import. Elsewhere in…
Mideast protests a red flag to Chinese censors
Working to defend press freedom, I take it that I’ve hit the mark when I get censored. So I smiled today when I got an e-mail from a friend in China who said he was in the gym watching breakfast television when my face came up on CNN. I opened my mouth and the screen…
Foreign journalists detained in China’s ‘Jasmine’ protests
New York, February 28, 2011–Chinese security officials’ concerted attack on the foreign press in a busy commercial street near Tiananmen Square in Beijing Sunday is a return to the restrictions international reporters faced before they were eased in the run-up to the 2008 Olympics, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Lawyer’s footage of house arrest published in China
Men in plainclothes recently harassed at least six foreign journalists in Shandong province. Vivid news footage shoes a group pelting CNN reporter Stan Grant and his photographer with rocks when they tried to visit the home of an activist under house arrest. Brice Pedroletti from France’s Le Monde, Stephane Lagarde with Radio France Internationale, and…
Journalists targeted in Bahrain, Yemen, and Libya
New York, February 18, 2011–The Committee to Protect Journalists called on authorities today in Bahrain, Yemen, Libya to cease their attempts to prevent media from reporting on anti-government demonstrations. Bahraini authorities used live ammunition–including fire from a helicopter–against peaceful protesters and journalists, according to news reports. Pro-government thugs attacked at least two journalists in Yemen, and…
Egypt instigates media blackout, police target journalists
New York, January 28, 2011–Egyptian authorities have taken unprecedented measures to block media coverage of widespread protests against the government, which are on their fourth day. CPJ condemns Cairo’s news blackout and calls for authorities to immediately restore Internet and mobile phone services, end the targeting of the press, and allow media to conduct their work…
Somali journalist Mustafa Haji Abdinur wins CNN award
At CPJ’s International Press Freedom Award ceremony in November 2009, Agence France-Presse’s Somalia correspondent Mustafa Haji Abdinur—an award winner—pleaded with his audience: “Friends, if a journalist is killed the news is also killed. We need your support now more than ever. Please don’t forget us.” Abidnur, 28, has not been forgotten. We are excited to learn that…