Europe & Central Asia

Istanbul, March 23, 2026—Turkish authorities must immediately release journalist İsmail Arı and stop misusing the disinformation law, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday.  Arı, a reporter for the leftist daily BirGün, was taken into custody in the northern province of Tokat, where he was visiting family on March 21. He was taken to Ankara the…

Update: After publication, CPJ was able to confirm that two other journalists, Aleh Supruniuk and Valeryia Kastsiuhova, had been released domestically. Journalist Dzmitry Navazhylau remained behind bars as of April 7, despite initial reports that he was among those released. New York, March 19, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the release of Belarusian journalist Katsiaryna Andreyeva, who was among 250 prisoners freed on Thursday…

New York, March 19, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Azerbaijan to release journalist Ahmad Mammadli and credibly investigate claims that police severely mistreated him. A court in the capital, Baku, sentenced Mammadli on Monday to six years in prison on a charge of causing serious bodily harm. Mammadli denied the charge and said it…

Istanbul, March 16, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists urged the Turkish authorities on Monday not to fight the appeals of veteran journalists Ahmet Altan and Nazlı Ilıcak. An Istanbul court found Altan, the former editor-in-chief of the defunct liberal daily Taraf, and Ilıcak, a former host for the defunct Can Erzincan TV, guilty of “aiding a [terrorist] organization without being…

Berlin, March 16, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Hungarian authorities to swiftly investigate the forcible removal of reporters Judit Presinszky and Nóra Siteri with the news site Telex from a campaign event, and to ensure that journalists can cover election-related events without intimidation or violence. “Telex’s Judit Presinszky and Nóra Siteri being forcibly removed while…

New York, March 9, 2026 — The Committee to Protect Journalists strongly condemns the March 6 sentencing of Belarusian journalist Pavel Dabravolski to nine years in jail on treason charges, and calls on Belarusian authorities to release him immediately.   Dabravolski’s trial, held behind closed doors, started in Minsk, the capital, on February 27. The charges under Article 356, Part 1 of…

New York, March 5, 2026— Belarusian authorities must immediately release radio host Aleh Khamenka and stop jailing journalists for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. On March 4, a Belarusian court in Minsk, the capital, convicted journalist Aleh Khamenka on charges of promoting “extremist” activities and sentenced him to three years’ imprisonment, according to the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ),…

Berlin, March 5, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Kosovo authorities to ensure that all perpetrators involved in the threats and the recent physical attack on Burim Pacolli, a journalist with the news site Nacionale, are brought to justice, and to take immediate measures to safeguard him and his family amid ongoing threats. “The violent street ambush on…

New York, March 4, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists renews its call for Georgian authorities to release journalist Mzia Amaglobeli, after the country’s Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to consider an appeal of her two-year prison sentence. “The Supreme Court’s refusal to even admit Mzia Amaglobeli’s appeal for consideration is yet another blow — not just…

New York, March 3, 2026—Belarusian authorities should immediately release journalists Uladzimir Yanukevich and Andrei Pakalenka, and stop jailing journalists for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On February 26, a court in the southwestern city of Brest convicted 66-year-old Yanukevich and 44-year-old Pakalenka on treason charges, and sentenced them to 14 and…