Magar, a central council member of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) and secretary of the FNJ’s Kathmandu office, was last seen running an errand in the afternoon of November 18, according to the FNJ. Local press freedom groups suspect that security forces took Magar into custody.
Security forces also detained Ghimire, managing director of the monthly Samadristi, while he was on his way to work on his motorcycle, according to the Kathmandu-based Center for Human Rights and Democratic Studies, a press freedom group. His whereabouts are unknown.
In the wake of the government’s August 27 broken cease-fire agreement with Maoist rebels, many journalists were targeted and detained by security forces. While the majority of journalists were held briefly and then released, Magar and Ghimire were still being detained at undisclosed locations at year’s end. No known charges have been filed against them.