Africa

  

Chained and blindfolded: Nigerian journalist Segun Olatunji recounts his detention

The arrest and detention of Segun Olatunji, the then-editor of the privately owned First News site, by Nigeria’s military in March triggered an outcry from local and international civil society, highlighting an uptick in the unlawful detention of journalists in the West African nation.  Olatunji was taken from his Alagbado home in southwestern Lagos state by more than a dozen armed men who…

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Cyberattackers are knocking out media sites around the world with an emerging censorship strategy that uses inexpensive tools, masks attackers' identities, and is very difficult to defend against. (Photo illustration: CPJ; source image: Reuters/Heinz-Peter Bader)

Cyberattackers use easily available tools to target media sites, threaten press freedom

When exiled Russian news website Meduza was hit with a flood of internet traffic in mid-April, it set off alarm bells among the staff as the deluge blocked publishing for more than four hours and briefly rendered the site inaccessible for some readers. It was the largest distributed denial of service attack (DDoS) attack in…

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AliNur Salaad of Dawan Media

Somali police arrest journalist AliNur Salaad on ‘false reporting’ allegations

Kampala, July 26, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Somali authorities to immediately release journalist AliNur Salaad who was remanded in custody for 45 days on allegations of “immorality, false reporting, and insulting the armed forces.” “Somali authorities must immediately free journalist AliNur Salaad, drop all legal proceedings against him, and allow journalists to…

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A broadcast image of Kenyan journalist Catherine Wanjeri wa Kariuki after she was shot with rubber bullets while covering anti-government protests on July 16. (Screengrab: YouTube/Mutembi TV)

Kenyan journalist Catherine Wanjeri wa Kariuki shot in leg covering protests

Kampala, July 16, 2024 —Kenyan authorities must conduct a swift and thorough investigation into the July 16 shooting of journalist Catherine Wanjeri wa Kariuki as she covered ongoing protests in the country, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. Kariuki, a reporter for the privately owned Mediamax Network Ltd media group, was shot three times…

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Armed men in masks claiming to be agents of the National Intelligence Agency (ANR) took Traoré, a satirical columnist for the private radio station Omega, from his home in the capital of Ouagadougou on July 13.

Burkina Faso columnist Alain Traoré taken by armed men in masks

Dakar, July 16, 2024— Burkinabe authorities should immediately and comprehensively investigate the disappearance of columnist Alain Traoré after armed men in masks claiming to be agents of the National Intelligence Agency (ANR) took Traoré, a satirical columnist for the private radio station Omega, from his home in the capital of Ouagadougou on July 13. Three other journalists—Serge Atiana Oulon,…

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Nigerian court acquits publisher Agba Jalingo of cybercrime charges

Abuja, July 9, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes Monday’s court decision in Nigeria acquitting Agba Jalingo, publisher of the privately owned CrossRiverWatch, of cybercrime charges. “While we welcome the acquittal of publisher Agba Jalingo of cybercrime charges, Nigerian authorities urgently need to stop the criminalization of journalists for their work,” said Angela Quintal, head…

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Gabriel Idibia told CPJ he recieved medical care at a local hospital after he was punched by a police officer on his left eye on June 11 in Kaduna, the capital city of Nigeria’s northern Kaduna State. (Photo: Gabriel Idibia)

Nigeria police arrest, detain, assault journalist Gabriel Idibia while in custody

On June 11, police officers in Kaduna, the capital city of Nigeria’s northern Kaduna State, arrested Gabriel Idibia, a correspondent and freelancer with the privately owned Daily Times and Daybreak Nigeria news sites, while he was taking photos of the officers guiding a large group of cattle across a road, according media reports, Idibia and Daybreak Nigeria publisher Austin Maho, who both spoke to CPJ.  Idibia…

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A man in a suit stands before a news broadcast background.

Kenya court rules police unlawfully killed Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif

Kampala, July 8, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes a Kenyan court’s Monday ruling that Kenyan authorities violated Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif’s right to life and that his death was arbitrary and unconstitutional. “CPJ welcomes the Kenyan High Court’s ruling that the 2022 killing of Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif was unlawful,” said Angela Quintal, head…

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A composite image of three male journalists speaking into microphones.

Three journalists disappear, 3 media outlets suspended in Burkina Faso

Dakar, July 3, 2024—The Burkinabe authorities must do everything possible to find and ensure the safety of missing journalists Serge Atiana Oulon, Kalifara Séré, and Adama Bayala, and refrain from censoring the media, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. At least three Burkinabe journalists in the capital, Ouagadougou, have separately disappeared under suspicious circumstances…

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Malian journalist Yeri Bocoum missing after covering banned protest

Dakar, June 27, 2024 — Malian authorities should urgently investigate the disappearance of journalist Yeri Bocoum and account for his whereabouts, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. Bocoum, director of the Facebook news page YBC-Communication, was last seen by his family outside his home in Kati, a district in the western region of Koulikoro,…

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