2014
Kurdish reporter killed in Iraqi Kurdistan
New York, August 11, 2014–A Kurdish journalist was killed in Makhmur district, south of the city of Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan, on Friday when shrapnel from mortar shelling hit her in the chest, according to news reports. Deniz Firat, a freelance reporter, was covering clashes between Kurdish forces and insurgents with the Islamic State, an…
Indonesia arrests two French journalists reporting in Papua
New York, August 11, 2014–Indonesian authorities have detained two French journalists since last week, according to news reports. Documentary filmmakers Thomas Dandois and Valentine Bourrat were detained after reporting on the separatist movement in the restive eastern region of Papua and have been accused of entering the country illegally on a tourist visa, the reports…
Russian photojournalist missing in eastern Ukraine
New York, August 11, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about the safety of Andrei Stenin, Russian photojournalist for the state news agency Rossiya Segodnya (previously RIA Novosti). The agency said it had not heard from Stenin since August 5, when he was reporting on the conflict in eastern Ukraine, including from the cities…
As elections approach, fear of more attacks on Congolese press
Map by Rachael Levy. Sources: Congolese organizations, news reports, and CPJ research. Not all data has been independently verified by CPJ. Tensions are rising in the Democratic Republic of the Congo after a government official announced recently he would support a change in the constitution to allow President Joseph Kabila, who has been in power…
Turkish prime minister publicly chastises Economist correspondent
New York, August 8, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by comments made by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan against a journalist on Thursday. At an election rally in southern Turkey, Erdoğan called Amberin Zaman, local correspondent for The Economist, “a shameless militant disguised under the name of a journalist,” and urged her to…
In Azerbaijan, media watchdog raided, equipment confiscated
New York, August 8, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Azerbaijani authorities to stop harassing the Baku-based media freedom group Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety. Detectives with Azerbaijan’s Prosecutor General’s Office raided the IRFS premises today, the local press reported. A journalist who was at the raid told CPJ that the detectives confiscated…
Two journalists and three media workers abducted in Libya
New York, August 8, 2014–At least two journalists and three media workers affiliated with the privately owned Albarqa TV station were abducted at a checkpoint in the eastern Libyan city of Tobruk on Monday, according to the station and news reports. The reports said the five were taken by a militant group affiliated with Islamists…
In Somalia, Puntland authorities detain radio journalist
On August 6, 2014, police in the semi-autonomous region of Puntland detained Fatima Yusuf, a reporter for the private broadcaster Radio Daljir, according to local journalists and news reports. Police raided Fatima’s hotel room in Puntland’s capital, Garowe, and also arrested two other journalists, Puntland TV reporter Khadro Mohamed and Kalsan TV reporter Abdinasir Da’ad.…
Police officer convicted in death of imprisoned Iranian blogger
New York, August 7, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes today’s conviction of a police officer in the death of Iranian blogger Sattar Beheshti and calls on Iranian authorities to disclose details of the investigation and trial. The police officer was given three years in jail, two years in exile, and 74 lashes for assaulting…