Iran

New York, January 10, 2012–Two prosecution witnesses at a trial of banned Yemeni daily Al-Ayyam last month testified in favor of the defense, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today after reviewing court documents.

In its annual census of imprisoned journalists, CPJ data shows nearly half of the 179 held in jail in 2011 worked primarily online. Al Jazeera highlights some of the challenges facing online journalism in the Middle East and around the world in 2011.Click here for the full story.

New York, December 23, 2011 — The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns China’s harsh sentencing of online journalist and activist Chen Wei, who was handed a nine-year prison term on Friday for “inciting subversion.”

Kassahun Yilma left Ethiopia quickly in December 2009. He didn’t have time to save money for the journey, choose a place to go, arrange housing or a job. He left his wife, his mother, his house and all his friends behind. Yilma didn’t know what lay ahead. He only knew that if he stayed, he…

Press freedom in Turkey is under assault. Thousands of criminal cases have been filed against reporters, the Criminal Code and Anti-Terrorism Act are used routinely to silence critical news coverage, and Kurdish journalists face constant persecution. Today CPJ released its annual prison census, which tracks cases of journalists jailed for their work globally. (The list…

As of December 1, 2011    |   » Read the accompanying report, “Journalist imprisonments jump worldwide, and Iran is worst”

In this video companion to CPJ’s 2011 census of imprisoned journalists, Azerbaijani editor Eynulla Fatullayev describes his own time in prison and how international advocacy can make a difference in winning the freedom of jailed reporters, editors, photojournalists, and bloggers. (4:47) Read the special report “Imprisonments jump worldwide” and view our database of journalists in…