Radio commentator shot dead in Philippines
Bangkok, August 30, 2013–A radio commentator was shot dead in Iligan City on Thursday, the fourth journalist to be murdered in the Philippines in the past month. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities to investigate the murder of Fernando “Nanding” Solijon and swiftly bring the perpetrators of the crime to justice.
Tunisian journalist jailed for filming attack on official
New York, August 29, 2013–Tunisian authorities should release a journalist and drop charges against him for allegedly conspiring to commit violence against a government official, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Mourad Meherzi, a photographer for the local online TV channel Astrolabe, could face up to five years in jail, according to news reports.
News outlets, Twitter targeted in alleged cyberattacks
New York, August 28, 2013–The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by cyber-attacks on several websites on Tuesday, including The New York Times, whose site was disabled for several hours. The Syrian Electronic Army (SEA), a group of hackers who support President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, took credit for the attack via its Twitter account.…
Escapees give hope in cases of journalists missing in Syria
It has now been an entire year since Al-Hurra correspondent Bashar Fahmi, a Jordanian of Palestinian origin, and freelancer Austin Tice, of the United States, went missing in Syria. But the recent liberation of two freelance journalists held for months gives us some reason to hope.
Q&A: Hubaal’s editor talks about press in Somaliland
Hubaal, Somaliland’s critical and much-beleaguered daily newspaper, is back on newsstands after a presidential pardon last week. The paper was shuttered on orders of the attorney general in June without explanation. In April, two gunmen, subsequently identified by authorities as police officers, raided the office of Hubaal and attacked its staff after a series of…
Critical Sri Lankan newspaper editor held at knifepoint
New York, August 26, 2013–Five unidentified men entered the Colombo home of a Sunday Leader associate editor and writer early Saturday morning, held her at knifepoint, and searched her home, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Sri Lankan authorities to conduct a thorough and efficient investigation into the attack on…