Pakistan

New York, May 25, 2023–-Pakistan authorities must immediately reveal the whereabouts of journalists Sami Abraham and Imran Riaz Khan and stop intimidating the press as the country’s political turmoil drags on, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. At around 9 p.m. on Wednesday, May 24, between eight and 10 men—some wearing uniforms—detained Abraham, president…

New York, May 24, 2023—Pakistani authorities must cease harassing journalists covering the country’s political unrest and respect the media’s right to report freely and safely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. Since May 16, police have visited the homes of at least three journalists who reported from the scene of a May 9 protest…

New York, May 12, 2023—Pakistan authorities and the leadership and supporters of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party must respect the rights of journalists covering the country’s political unrest, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. Amid protests following the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday, May 9, authorities and supporters of Khan’s…

New York, May 2, 2023—Pakistan authorities must conduct an immediate and impartial investigation into the abduction and alleged electrocution of journalist Gohar Wazir and hold the perpetrators to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. At around 4 p.m. on April 19, five unidentified men abducted Wazir, a reporter for the privately owned Pashto-language…

Six months after Kenyan authorities said Kenyan police shot dead prominent Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif, his wife Javiera Siddique spoke to CPJ about the lack of justice for her husband, the online smear campaign against her, and her hopes for how the international community can help. Sharif was killed outside Nairobi on October 23, 2022,…

Justice remains elusive six months after the killing of prominent Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif in Kenya on October 23, 2022. Kenyan authorities claimed Sharif was shot dead by Kenyan police in an incident that shocked Pakistan’s media community and raised questions about whether his death was connected to his work. “This was a targeted killing,”…

Many exiled Afghan journalists are still in limbo more than 18 months after the Taliban seized power, forcing hundreds of thousands of Afghans to flee as the Taliban cracked down on the country’s previously vibrant independent media landscape. Exiled journalists unable to move beyond neighboring Pakistan are in increasingly dire straits. Unable to find jobs…

Stuck with no income for more than a year after fleeing Afghanistan for Pakistan, Samiullah Jahesh was ready to sell his kidney to put food on the table for his family. “I had no other option, I had no money or food at home,” Jahesh, a former journalist with Afghanistan’s independent Ariana News TV channel,…

New York, March 6, 2023 – Pakistan authorities must immediately rescind the ban on satellite television channels airing live and recorded speeches by former Prime Minister Imran Khan and restore the license of the privately owned television broadcaster ARY News, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. On the evening of Sunday, March 5, the…

On February 17, 2023, an unfamiliar account hijacked a Facebook page run by private broadcaster Voice News and published posts that staff fear may trigger harassment or criminal investigation, according to Ahmer Shaheen, the CEO and chief editor, who spoke to CPJ in a phone interview. The broadcaster’s website and second Facebook page have also…