2018
Syrian journalist killed in airstrike in western Aleppo province
Beirut, August 13, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned the killing of Syrian cameraperson and photojournalist Ahmed Azize and urged all parties in the ongoing Syrian conflict to guarantee the safety of civilians, including journalists.
How Turkey silences journalists online, one removal request at a time
On June 19, Abdülhamit Bilici, the last editor-in-chief of the now-shuttered Turkish paper Zaman, tweeted about the decline of press freedom in his home country. If you can see his tweet, you are probably not in Turkey because it is among the over 1.5 million tweets belonging to journalists and media outlets censored there under…
Gujarat police beat up photojournalist, charge him with looting and rioting
New Delhi, August 9, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned a brutal attack on photojournalist Pravin Indrekar by police in the Indian state of Gujarat, and called on the state authorities to withdraw charges of looting and rioting that police filed against him.
CPJ calls on Maldives to drop fine against opposition-aligned Raajje TV
New York, August 9, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Maldives authorities to withdraw fines against and stop targeting the opposition-aligned broadcaster Raajje TV. The Maldives Broadcasting Commission yesterday fined Raajje TV 2 million Maldivian rufiyaa (US$130,000)– the largest amount it can impose– for airing a politician’s statement made at an opposition demonstration…
Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of August 6, 2018
Journalist arrested Authorities in the southeastern city of Mardin on August 8 took Uğur Akgül, a former reporter for the shuttered pro-Kurdish Dicle News Agency (DİHA), into custody to serve his prison sentence of two years and six months after a court rejected his appeal, according to the pro-Kurdish Mezopotamya News Agency. The journalist was…
Cameroon community radio destroyed in alleged arson attack
Johannesburg, August 9, 2018–Cameroonian authorities should speedily investigate an alleged arson attack on community radio station Sky FM in the volatile Northwest region and ensure those responsible are prosecuted, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Mexican federal authorities interview reporter as potential trial witness
The office of Mexico’s Federal Attorney General (PGR) on July 11, 2018, sent an email to the news website Quadratin summoning one of its reporters, Jorge Octavio Vargas Sandoval, for an interview at its regional office in Chilpancingo on July 16 in regards to an article he wrote, according to the reporter and the publication’s…
CPJ Safety Advisory: Covering Unite the Right rally and counter-protests in Washington, D.C.
Hundreds of protesters are expected to join a “white civil rights rally” in Washington, D.C., on August 11 and 12 to mark the one-year anniversary of the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, which became violent and resulted in the death of one woman. A coalition of local organizations is planning counter-protests in Washington…
Belarus police raid independent media offices, detain journalists
Kiev, August 8, 2018–Belarusian authorities should immediately release detained journalists and stop harassing independent media outlets, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Police raided the Minsk offices of at least three independent Belarusian news outlets and detained at least 17 journalists yesterday and today, accusing them of unlawfully obtaining information from a state news…
Ugandan journalist attacked twice while covering parliamentary elections
Nairobi, August 8, 2018–Authorities in Uganda should rigorously investigate two attacks on journalist Damba Wiziri that occurred while he was covering a recent national parliamentary election in Sheema Municipality, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.