Polish court bans reporter Anna Wilk from journalism for 3 years in criminal libel suit
Berlin, June 4, 2019–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the conviction and sentence of journalist Anna Wilk in a criminal libel lawsuit in which she was sentenced on first instance for a fine and a three-year ban on practicing journalism.
Australian police raid home of Sunday Telegraph journalist Annika Smethurst
New York, June 4, 2019–Australian Federal Police today raided the Canberra home of Annika Smethurst, a politics editor for the Sunday Telegraph, and searched her property, computer, and cellphone, according to news reports. In a statement, police said the search warrant was part of an investigation into the alleged leak of national security information. In…
CPJ joins call for UN Security Council to act on Cameroon crisis
The Committee to Protect Journalists and eight other civil society organizations sent a letter to members of the United Nations Security Council about the deteriorating humanitarian and human rights situation in Cameroon. The letter was sent ahead of the U.N. Regional Office for Central Africa briefing to the Security Council, due to take place on…
Revolutionary court in Iran sentences journalist Masoud Kazemi to 4.5 years in prison
New York, June 3, 2019 — The Committee to Protect Journalists strongly condemned the sentencing today of Masoud Kazemi, the editor-in-chief of the monthly Sedaye Parsi political magazine. Judge Mohammad Moghiseh of Tehran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps Branch 28 court found Kazemi guilty on national security charges of spreading misinformation and insulting the supreme leader and…
Bulgarian reporter Hristo Geshov says he was briefly abducted; news outlets attack him
The Bulgarian freelance investigative journalist Hristo Geshov said he received threats and at least two news outlets published articles attacking him and shared explicit videos and photos of him after he reported on an allegedly illegal water supply and sewage system at the Chiflika resort complex in Troyan, central Bulgaria. He also said that unknown…
Harsh conditions for Askarov, the Kyrgyz journalist UN says should be freed
On a recent morning in Bazar-Korgon, southern Kyrgyzstan, Khadicha Askarova was giving hasty instructions to her daughter about what needed to be packed. They were about to set off: first for the capital Bishkek, some 600km from where they live, and then another 70km to a prison colony where her husband, Azimjon Askarov, was transferred…
Somali journalist Ali Adan Mumin jailed despite court order for release
EDITOR’S NOTE: Immediately after publishing this article, CPJ learned that Ali Adan Mumin has been released from jail. The journalist was released on the condition that he could be summoned by police for questioning at any time, according to Somali Journalists Syndicate cofounder Abdalle Ahmed Mumin and Goobjoog Media Director Hassan Mohamud Mohamed.
CPJ calls on Houthis in Yemen to release all detained journalists
New York, May 31, 2019–The Ansar Allah group, known as the Houthis, should immediately release all journalists in its custody and stop its campaign of detentions and intimidation against journalists working in areas under its control, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Sudan’s military rulers shut down Al-Jazeera Khartoum bureau
Washington, D.C., May 31, 2019–Sudan’s military rulers yesterday ordered the Khartoum bureau of Al-Jazeera to be shut down and banned its staff from working in the country, the Qatari-broadcaster said today. Forces yesterday raided the outlet without providing a reason and confiscated work permits for staff and broadcasting equipment, Hassan Saeed Elmogummer Taha, an Al-Jazeera…