Europe & Central Asia

New York, August 26, 2024 – The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the killing of Reuters safety adviser Ryan Evans in an attack that also injured three journalists in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk. “The missile strike that killed Reuters safety adviser Ryan Evans and injured three other journalists is a sad and sobering…

New York, August 21, 2024 – The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the release of Belarusian journalist Ksenia Lutskina, who has served nearly half of an eight-year sentence, following a presidential pardon. Lutskina was among 30 political prisoners who were involved in “protest activities” and suffered from serious health issues and chronic conditions in jail who were pardoned by…

New York, August 20, 2024—Azerbaijani investigators charged six journalists from anti-corruption investigative outlet Abzas Media with seven new economic crimes in relation to alleged funding from Western donor organizations in recent days. “Azerbaijani authorities’ move to throw new charges against Abzas Media’s jailed investigative journalists is testament to the vindictive impulse behind their prosecution of…

Berlin, August 19, 2024 – The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns a decision by Russian authorities to open a criminal case against Italian journalists Stefania Battistini and Simone Traini for alleged illegal border crossing from Ukraine into Russia. “Trying to put Italian journalists Stefania Battistini and Simone Traini on trial seems to be a desperate…

New York, August 19, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Tajikistan’s authorities to drop bribery charges against Ahmad Ibrohim, chief editor of the independent weekly newspaper Payk, who was arrested August 12. “Following the wave of lengthy convictions against journalists in Tajikistan since 2022, the arrest of Ahmad Ibrohim is yet another reminder of…

British judge David Neuberger, who was part of a Hong Kong court panel that denied an appeal from media publisher Jimmy Lai and six pro-democracy campaigners, should “do the right thing and reconsider” his position in the Chinese-ruled city, the Committee to Protect Journalists and 44 groups said in a Monday letter. The letter said…

Russia’s months-long jailing of journalists Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva —released on August 1 as part of a prisoner exchange — was one of the most blatant illustrations of Russia’s muzzling of the press in the wake of its February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The war has precipitated what a representative of the now-shuttered Russian Journalists’ and Media Workers’…

Berlin, August 7, 2024 — Russia’s plans to hamper the operations of YouTube – the country’s most popular social media channel and a major platform for exiled Russian media outlets  – is yet another form of censoring the news available to Russian audiences, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Wednesday.   “This intentional throttling of YouTube is a blatant attempt to…

Berlin, August 6, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists denounces Tuesday’s sentencing of exiled journalist Dmitry Kolezev to 7 ½ years in prison in absentia on charges of spreading “fake” news about the Russian army and urges authorities to stop harassing Russian journalists abroad. “The lengthy prison sentence meted out to Dmitry Kolezev in absentia underscores…

New York, August 6, 2024—Belarusian authorities convicted freelance reporter Ales Sabaleuski and freelance camera operator Yauhen Hlushkou, on extremism charges and sentenced them to four and three years in prison, respectively, on Wednesday, July 31. “The court’s sentencing of journalists Ales Sabaleuski and Yauhen Hlushkou to three and four years in prison is yet another…