Washington, D.C., July 3, 2025— The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the June 18 arrest of journalist Muzahim Bajaber in central Yemen’s Hadramout Governorate on unspecified charges. The warrant, reviewed by CPJ, was issued by a Specialized Criminal Court and violates Article 13 of Yemen’s Press and Publications Law, which protects journalists from punishment for publishing their opinions unless they…
New York July 2, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Zimbabwean authorities to release newspaper editor Faith Zaba, who was arrested on July 1. She is facing charges of “undermining or insulting the authority of the president” in connection with a satirical column. “This case sends the message that Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa and…
Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, July 2, 2025—Iraqi authorities must immediately end their unexplained shutdown and suspension of the privately owned Iraq AlHadath news broadcaster in Baghdad and ensure that media outlets can operate freely and independently, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. “The shutdown of Iraq AlHadath without transparent justification represents a troubling move against press freedom in…
Atlanta, July 2, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the decision by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorities not to comply with a federal immigration judge order that granted bail to Atlanta-based Salvadoran journalist Mario Guevara, who was originally arrested on First Amendment-related charges. Those charges were dropped on June 25. CPJ calls for Guevara’s immediate…
UPDATE: On August 6, President Sadyr Japarov signed the media law into effect. New York, July 2, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists urges Kyrgyzstan President Sadyr Japarov to veto a new mass media law that would require all publications to register with the state and heavily restricts any foreign legal entities from founding or owning media outlets. Parliament…
Atlanta, July 2, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns Paramount Global’s $16 million settlement with U.S. President Donald Trump reached on Tuesday, with deep concern that such a concession by a major news network will set a harmful precedent of media self-censorship. “This is a major blow for press freedom in the United States: A…
New York, July 2, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls for the immediate release of Tunisian media commentator Sonia Dahmani, who was sentenced on June 30 to an additional two years in prison on charges of spreading false news, after condemning racism in the country, an act she is already serving jail time for. Dahmani’s lawyers withdrew from Monday’s trial to protest that…
Istanbul, July 1, 2025—Turkish authorities must release from custody four staff members of the leftist satirical weekly LeMan and ensure their safety, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. Police raided the Istanbul offices of LeMan Monday evening and detained the staff members after the publication of what officials claimed was a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad, a depiction that is forbidden in…
New York, July 1, 2025—Algerian authorities must immediately release freelance French sports journalist Christophe Gleizes, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. An Algiers court sentenced him on June 29 to seven years in prison on charges of “glorifying terrorism” and “possessing propaganda publications harmful to the national interest.” Gleizes was arrested on May 28, 2024, in the town of…
Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, July 1, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns an Israeli airstrike on Al-Baqa Café, a beachfront venue in western Gaza City, which killed 34-year-old Palestinian filmmaker and photojournalist Ismail Abu Hatab and injured freelance journalist Bayan Abusultan on Monday, according to multiple news reports and an eyewitness photographer, who spoke with CPJ. “Palestinian filmmaker Ismail Abu Hatab’s death in an Israeli…