Alerts
2004
Barred from international travel, writer misses Courage Award ceremony
New York, October 12, 2004—The Committee to Protect Journalists strongly protests a travel ban imposed on Iranian journalist and human rights activist Emadeddin Baghi, who was due to be honored here today with an award recognizing his courage in fighting injustice. Iranian officials confiscated Baghi’s passport at Tehran’s airport on October 4, and prevented him…
Court acquits suspect in Togliatti editor’s murder
New York, October 12, 2004—A Russian district court judge yesterday acquitted a factory welder in the October 2003 murder of Tolyattinskoye Obozreniye Editor Aleksei Sidorov. The Committee to Protect Journalists, which questioned whether the prosecution was aimed at the true killer, called today for a new and more credible investigation.
CPJ concerned about criminal inquiry against a North Ossetian journalist
New York, October 8, 2004—Authorities in the southern Russian republic of North Ossetia are pursuing a criminal investigation against Yuri Bagrov, a reporter covering the North Caucasus for The Associated Press. The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned the government probe may be motivated by Bagrov’s reporting on politically sensitive issues, including the war in…
Judge holds Times reporter in contempt in CIA case
New York, October 7, 2004—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned that a federal judge has held another reporter in contempt for not disclosing confidential sources to prosecutors investigating the leak of a CIA operative’s identity. Judge Thomas F. Hogan today ordered New York Times reporter Judith Miller jailed until she agrees to testify…
Veteran journalist brutally murdered by ax-wielding assailants
New York, October 4, 2004—Assailants wielding knives and traditional axes brutally murdered the executive editor of the Bangla-language daily, Durjoy Bangla, late Saturday night in the latest fatal attack on the press in Bangladesh, according to local journalists and press accounts. The Committee to Protect Journalists is investigating the potential motives behind the slaying to…
Journalist missing in rebel zone for more than a month
New York, October 4, 2004—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned by reports that a correspondent for the private daily L’Inter has gone missing from the rebel-held town of Bouake after receiving threats from rebels. Amadou Dagnogo was last seen on August 28 by a neighbor, according to L’Inter Editor Charles d’Almeida. Before disappearing,…
Backing off earlier statements, Moscow police deny progress in Klebnikov case
New York, October 4, 2004—Moscow police have backed away from statements made by their chief last week in which he said two Chechen men were considered suspects in the murder of Paul Klebnikov, editor of Forbes Russia, according to local press reports. Police Chief Vladimir Pronin was widely quoted in local and international news reports…
Another reporter gunned down, as journalists’ death toll rises
New York, September 29, 2004-Gunmen shot and killed a tabloid reporter early this morning in Bataan province, in the central Luzon region, according to local and international news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists is investigating the circumstances surrounding the murder to determine if it was related to the journalist’s reporting. The reporter, identified as…
CNN producer freed in Gaza City
New York, September 28, 2004—CNN producer Riad Ali was freed and in the custody of Palestinian police today, a day after being abducted by gunmen on a main street in Gaza City, CNN reported. CNN President Jim Walton said the station was “enormously relieved” that Ali had been released. “His ordeal serves to highlight the…
Inter-American Court condemns criminal defamation conviction
New York, September 28, 2004–In a decision with broad implications for press freedom in Latin America, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights has ruled that a criminal defamation conviction in Paraguay violated international law. The court, in a decision handed down this month, found that the criminal proceedings themselves violated the American Convention on Human…