Journalist, media worker killed in Gaza City
New York, May 14, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalist is outraged by the killings of a journalist and a media worker, who were shot on Sunday in Gaza City. Gunmen wearing presidential guard uniforms stopped a taxi carrying Suleiman Abdul-Rahim al-Ashi, 25, an economics editor for the Hamas-affiliated daily Palestine, and Mohammad Matar Abdo, 25,…
Media company chief slain in Iraq; three others killed
Editor’s Note: The original text of this alert has been altered to reflect the correct spelling of Raad Mutashar’s name. New York, May 9, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns today’s murder of an Iraqi journalist, his driver, and two passengers, who were gunned down outside the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk. Gunmen riding in…
Palestinian group claims it’s holding Johnston, makes public demands
New York, May 9, 2007—The Palestinian militant group Jaish al-Islam has issued a recording in which it claims to be holding BBC correspondent Alan Johnston and demands the release of Muslim prisoners held by the United Kingdom in exchange for the journalist’s freedom. The audio and visual recording, published on an extremist Web site and…
Roadside bomb kills Russian photojournalist in Iraq
New York, May 7, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists mourns the death on Sunday of Dmitry Chebotayev, the first Russian journalist to be killed in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003. Chebotayev, a freelance photographer embedded with U.S. forces, was killed along with six American soldiers when a roadside bomb struck a U.S.…
Gunmen storm Baghdad radio station, killing one
New York, May 3, 2007—Dozens of heavily armed gunmen stormed an independent radio station in Baghdad’s Al-Jamia district today, killing one employee, destroying equipment, and knocking the station off the air. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns today’s assault on Radio Dijla. Around 2:30 p.m. local time, dozens of masked gunmen attacked Radio Dijla with…
Worldwide rallies seek release of BBC correspondent Alan Johnston
New York, May 3, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists joined with colleagues at a rally at U.N. headquarters today to call for the release of BBC correspondent Alan Johnston, abducted in Gaza more than seven weeks ago. Journalists in London, China, and Indonesia also rallied today, World Press Freedom Day, in support of Johnston’s release.…
Cairo court sentences Al-Jazeera producer to six months in jail
New York, May 2, 2007—On the same day the Committee to Protect Journalists cited Egypt for its deteriorating press conditions, a judge in Cairo convicted an Al-Jazeera producer on charges of “harming Egypt’s national interest” and “falsely depicting events” for her work on a documentary exposing police abuse. The court sentenced Howayda Taha Matwali, who…
Backsliders: The 10 countries where press freedom has most deteriorated
New York, May 2, 2007–Three nations in sub-Saharan Africa are among the places worldwide where press freedom has deteriorated the most over the last five years, a new analysis by the Committee to Protect Journalists has found. Ethiopia, where the government launched a massive crackdown on the private press by shutting newspapers and jailing editors,…