Moscow police detain around 20 journalists during protest by soldiers’ wives
New York, February 7, 2024—Russian authorities must refrain from detaining journalists in the course of their work and allow the media to report freely on protests criticizing the war in Ukraine, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. Around 20 journalists were arrested and briefly detained in the Russian capital of Moscow on February 3…
Iranian reporter Mehdi Afshar-Nik held incommunicado since January 31
Washington, D.C., February 6, 2024—Iranian authorities should immediately release investigative journalist Mehdi Afshar-Nik, whose whereabouts remain unknown since his arrest, and drop any charges against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. Around midnight on January 31, two plain-clothed agents of the Iranian security forces raided Afshar-Nik’s home, ransacked his apartment, confiscated his personal…
Exiled Russian journalist Denis Kamalyagin charged with violating foreign agent law
New York, February 6, 2024—Russian authorities must immediately drop all charges against journalist Denis Kamalyagin and stop harassing exiled members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. Kamalyagin, editor-in-chief of the exiled Russian newspaper Pskovskaya Guberniya, was charged in December with failing to comply with the country’s foreign agent law, according to…
Iranian journalist Nasrin Hassani begins 7-month prison sentence
Washington, D.C., February 6, 2024—Iranian authorities must release journalist Nasrin Hassani from prison immediately and cease jailing members of the press for doing their jobs by reporting on events of public interest, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On Sunday, Hassani, a reporter for the state-run local newspaper Etefaghyeh, and editor-in-chief of the social…
Pakistan restricts internet in Balochistan ahead of polls, blocks news website
New York, February 6, 2024—Pakistani authorities must allow journalists to work freely and safely in the run-up to elections on February 8, allow nationwide access to the internet, and unblock the investigative news website FactFocus, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. Internet services will be temporarily restricted in “sensitive” polling booths across Pakistan’s southwestern…
Senegal delays election, authorities cut mobile internet, revoke Walf TV’s license, harass journalists
Dakar, February 5, 2024—Senegalese authorities must restore mobile internet access in the country and the broadcasting license of Walf TV, investigate and hold accountable those responsible for briefly detaining or harassing at least four journalists, and allow the press to report freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Monday. On Saturday, Senegalese President Macky…
CPJ urges Kazakh authorities to investigate cyberattacks on media
Stockholm, February 2, 2024 – Kazakh authorities should fully investigate a recent wave of cyberattacks on independent media outlets and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. Cyberattacks by unidentified perpetrators have targeted at least nine independent media outlets and multiple journalists in Kazakhstan since November 2023, according to data…
After nearly 4 months in jail, Nigerian journalist Saint Mienpamo Onitsha freed on bail
Abuja, February 2, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes Thursday’s release on bail of Nigerian journalist Saint Mienpamo Onitsha and calls for authorities to drop all charges against him and reform the country’s laws to ensure journalism is not criminalized. “Saint Mienpamo Onitsha was detained for nearly four months simply for doing his job, which…
Personal information of hundreds of Mexican journalists exposed in government data leak
Mexico City, February 1, 2024— The personal information of at least 324 journalists who had registered with the office of the Mexican presidency to cover President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s live weekday morning broadcasts was posted on a website, according to several news reports, prompting a call by the Committee to Protect Journalists for an…
CPJ calls for an investigation into the targeting of journalists with Pegasus spyware in Jordan
Beirut, February 1, 2024 – The Committee to Protect Journalists is highly alarmed by the targeting of journalists with Pegasus spyware in Jordan and repeats its calls for an immediate moratorium on the sale, transfer, and use of such surveillance technologies, as well as a ban on spyware and its vendors that facilitate human rights…