Europe & Central Asia

  
Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses a meeting of Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Istanbul, on November 22, 2017. Several days prior, Erdoğan called journalists elitists and said that they are the

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of November 19, 2017

Journalists sentenced An Ankara court on November 22 sentenced Ayşenur Parıldak, a former court reporter for the shuttered daily Zaman, seven years and six months in prison for “being a member of an armed terrorist organization,” the online newspaper Diken reported.

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U.S. journalist Paul Klebnikov, pictured in Moscow in May 2004. Ukraine has arrested a suspect in the murder of Klebnikov, who was editor for Forbes Magazine's Russia edition. (AP/Misha Japaridze/File)

Ukraine arrests suspect in 2004 murder of Forbes editor Paul Klebnikov

Ukraine’s state intelligence agency announced on November 18 that it had detained a man wanted by Interpol for the high-profile murder of American journalist Paul Klebnikov in Russia 13 years ago. Russia’s Interior Ministry on November 20 named the suspect as Magomed Dukuzov and said that Ukrainian authorities had apprehended him at its request, according…

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A view of the "July 15th Martyrs' Bridge", formerly known as Bosporus Bridge, in Istanbul during a marathon on November 12, 2017. (AP/Lefteris Pitarakis)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of November 12, 2017

Journalists released A Turkish court on November 9 released from prison Mehmet Çağrı, chief editor for the local radio station Dersim Munzur, during his first trial hearing in the southeastern city of Tunceli, which is also known as by the Kurdish name of Dersim, the daily Evrensel reported.

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Supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan cheer as he addresses parliament in Ankara, Turkey, November 7, 2017. Turkish authorities, under Erdogan's leadership, began a wide-reaching crackdown after a failed attempted coup in June 2016. (Reuters/Umit Bektas)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of November 5, 2017

Journalists arrested A Turkish court on November 9 arrested Nuh Gönültaş, a columnist for the shuttered daily Bugün, Behram Kılıç, a sports reporter for the now-shuttered daily Zaman, and Mehmet Gündem, who formerly worked for Zaman and pro-government outlets including the state-run broadcaster TRT, according to the English-language news site Turkish Minute.

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A vigil for Daphne Caruana Galizia, outside Malta House in London, calls for justice in the case of the murdered investigative journalist. (Reporters Without Borders)

CPJ joins vigil calling for justice in Daphne Caruana Galizia’s murder

Today, on the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, CPJ joined with other international press freedom groups to condemn the murder last month of Daphne Caruana Galizia, an investigative journalist from Malta.

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Demonstrators hold placards and copies of the Cumhuriyet daily newspaper as they stage a protest outside a court where the trial of about a dozen employees of the newspaper on charges of aiding terror groups, continues in Istanbul, Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2017. Most of them were released from prison earlier this month, but four of them, including editor-in-chief Murat Sabuncu and investigative journalist Ahmet Sik, are still in prison.(AP/Lefteris Pitarakis)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of October 26, 2017

Journalists detained: Turkish police on November 1 briefly detained technology journalist Serdar Kuzuloğlu in Istanbul, the daily Hürriyet reported.

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People and soldiers visit the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk during a ceremony marking the 95th anniversary of Victory Day in Ankara, Turkey August 30, 2017. Turkish authorities on October 21 released three journalists who they detained last week during house raids that targeted leftist and pro-Kurdish media in Ankara. (Reuters/Umit Bektas)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of October 22, 2017

Two journalists held on terror charges An Istanbul court yesterday ordered two journalists from the socialist Etkin News Agency (ETHA) to be jailed pending trial, alongside 10 other people including politicians and lawyers, their employer reported today.

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Activists march to a court in Istanbul on July 24, 2017, in protest against the trial of journalists and staff from the Cumhuriyet newspaper. According to CPJ research, Turkey is one of worst jailer of journalists. (AP/Lefteris Pitarakis)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of October 15, 2017

Police conduct house raids, arrest at least 7 journalists Turkish police detained at least seven journalists from leftist and pro-Kurdish media outlets during house raids that took place yesterday in Istanbul and today in Ankara, according to the independent news site Bianet.

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A women's rights march in Belgrade on January 21, 2017. Women journalists in Serbia say they face threats of sexual violence and online abuse over their critical reporting. (AFP/Andrej Isakovic)

Two-fold risk for Serbia’s women journalists as attackers target their work and gender

“In the past five years I was publically called many things. I was an old hag, a sterile, cheap Soros’ prostitute, a hooker, not f***ed enough, in need of a good prick, and destroyer of the Serbian Orthodox Church,” said Tatjana Vojtehovski, a Serbian television journalist with a large presence on social media. “My response…

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A worker cleans a EU flag in Berlin on May 19, 2017. The EU parliament is due to vote on October 12 on a proposed review mechanism of surveillance tool exports. (AFP/John MacDougall)

Press at risk as EU-based companies export surveillance software to hostile regimes

In August, Danish Foreign Minister Anders Samuelsen told the daily newspaper Information that the government had authorized sales of online surveillance software to several Middle Eastern countries. While acknowledging the potential for human rights violations that could result from the use of these tools, the minister said that Denmark has an interest in the fight…

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