2006
Gunmen murder 11 at TV station in deadliest single attack on Iraqi press
New York, October 12, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists expressed outrage at the cold-blooded execution by masked gunmen of 11 employees of a fledgling satellite TV channel in Baghdad today. Gunmen in at least five vehicles drove up to Al-Shaabiya television in the eastern district of Zayouna around 7 a.m., Reuters reported. They burst into…
Journalist held without charge for 3 weeks by Iraqi forces
New York, October 11, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists today demanded that Iraqi authorities release Al-Hayat correspondent Kalshan al-Bayati, who was detained in Tikrit three weeks ago. Al-Bayati has been held without charge since she went to the security forces headquarters in Tikrit on September 18 to retrieve a personal computer confiscated during a raid…
Two kidnappings reported in Iraq
New York, October 11, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned by the kidnappings of an Iraqi journalist on Monday and another last month, both in Baghdad. The new reports come amid a recent rise in kidnappings of journalists, CPJ research shows. According to CPJ sources, unidentified gunmen kidnapped Ali Kareem, editor-in-chief of the…
See: CPJ calls on Putin to take responsibility for Politkovskaya murder probe
SEE: New York, October 10, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s belated public condemnation today of journalist Anna Politkovskaya’s murder but called on him to express unambiguous support for the criminal investigation.
Afghanistan: CPJ calls for probe into death of two German journalists
New York, October 10, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities in Afghanistan to intensify their investigation into the shooting deaths of two journalists working for German broadcaster Deutsche Welle. Germans Karen Fischer, 30, and Christian Struwe, 39, were killed Saturday in the tent they had pitched near a road in northern Afghanistan. The…
Kidnapped Iraqi journalist discovered in Baghdad morgue
New York, October 10, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the reported murder of an Iraqi journalist, whose body was identified in the Baghdad morgue today, a week after he had been kidnapped by unidentified gunmen. The Journalistic Freedoms Observatory, an Iraqi press freedom organization, said the body of Azad Muhammad Hussein, 29, a reporter…
CPJ condemns slaying of Russian reporter Anna Politkovskaya
New York, October 7, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns today’s murder of Anna Politkovskaya, a Russian journalist renowned for her critical coverage of the Chechen conflict. Politkovskaya was found shot to death in the elevator of her apartment building in Moscow, The Associated Press reported.
CPJ welcomes verdict in murder of Philippine reporter Marlene Garcia-Esperat
New York, October 6, 2006-The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes today’s conviction and sentencing of three people in the 2005 murder of investigative reporter Marlene Garcia-Esperat, but it calls on the government to aggressively pursue the prosecution of those who allegedly ordered the killing. CPJ also urged authorities to redouble their efforts in investigating the…
In Iraq, driver for state-owned TV gunned down
New York, October 6, 2006-The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the murder of Jassem Hamad Ibrahim, a driver for the Iraqi state television channel Al-Iraqiya who was shot by unidentified gunmen in Mosul on Wednesday. The assailants ambushed Ibrahim at about 2 p.m. as he was running errands for the station, according to a source…
Uzbek reporter sentenced to six years in prison despite witness reversal
New York, October 5, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists is outraged by the six-year prison sentence given today to independent reporter Ulugbek Khaidarov following a two-day trial in which the prosecution’s lead witness reportedly affirmed the journalist’s innocence. Khaidarov, whose reports in independent foreign publications were critical of government and business officials, was found guilty…