New York, May 30, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Iranian authorities to drop criminal charges against an Iranian-American journalist working for U.S.-backed Radio Farda, to return the journalist’s seized passport, and to allow her to travel freely. On May 15, the Special Security Bureau of the Revolutionary Court Public Prosecutor’s office charged…
New York, May 30, 2007–Blanket censorship imposed last November on private newspapers and radio stations was lifted this week after a six-month state of emergency, imposed in response to deadly unrest in eastern Chad, expired on Saturday, according to officials and local journalists. Three of the leading private newspapers in the capital N’Djamena, including weeklies…
New York, May 29, 2007—A local official’s severed head wrapped in newspaper was left Saturday morning outside the offices of a daily in southeastern Tabasco state, according to Mexican press reports. Unidentified individuals parked two Grand Cherokee SUVs in front of the Villahermosa-based Tabasco Hoy, 465 miles (745 kilometers) east of Mexico City. An individual…
New York, May 29, 2007—Venezuela’s commitment to democracy has suffered a serious blow as the government forced private television station RCTV off the air for political reasons on Monday after 53 years of continuous broadcasting, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. “This arbitrary decision thwarts Venezuelans’ right to seek and receive information and represents…
New York, May 25, 2007—Colombian radio journalist Rodrigo Callejas has been forced to flee his home in the western Tolima province after receiving death threats from an alleged guerrilla commander. The Committee to Protect Journalists called on Colombian authorities today to provide Callejas with the necessary protection to allow him to work without fear of…
New York, May 25, 2007—The Mexican federal government must provide immediate protection to the Hermosillo-based daily Cambio de Sonora so it can resume publishing, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The paper announced Thursday that it would suspend publication after two bomb attacks and repeated threats. Mario Vázquez Raña, president of the Mexican Editorial…
New York, May 25, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned that journalists have been prevented since Monday from entering a Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon during clashes between Islamist militants and the Lebanese Army. The Lebanese Army restricted public access to the Nahr el-Bared refugee camp in northern Lebanon, near Tripoli, the…
New York, May 25, 2007—A journalist and a dozen staffers of a public broadcaster in southwestern Oyo State were injured on Wednesday when armed supporters of a faction of the ruling PDP party ransacked the station, according to local journalists and news reports. The attack was apparently prompted by the station’s announcement that local elections…
New York, May 25, 2007—A court in the financial capital, Almaty, ordered the immediate suspension of the television station Kommerchesky Televizionny Kanal (KTK) and the weekly newspaper Karavan on Thursday for alleged violations of Kazakh media laws. “Kazakh prosecutors are selectively using vague legal provisions to silence media outlets,” CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon said.…
New York, May 24, 2007—A U.S. military report that exonerated U.S. troops in the killings of two Al-Arabiya journalists at a Baghdad checkpoint in 2004 failed to address contradictory witness reports, including statements from Al-Arabiya employees that at least two U.S. soldiers fired directly on the journalists’ vehicle, newly declassified records show. The report, disclosed…