Berlin, February 28, 2024—As a court hearing opened on Wednesday into complaints that two British journalists were targeted by UK authorities with covert surveillance, the Committee to Protect Journalists, together with four other press freedom groups, renewed their support for the investigation.
The investigation stems from complaints filed by investigative journalists Trevor Birney and Barry McCaffrey alleging that Northern Ireland police surveilled them in 2013. The Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), an independent judicial body charged with looking into surveillance allegations, is now holding a hearing on the lawfulness of the alleged surveillance.
In their statement, the organizations said that the use of covert surveillance against journalists who speak truth to power harms everyone’s right to freedom of expression and information.
Read the full statement here: