Judge orders arrest of Semana director
New York, November 21, 2008–A decision to order the arrest of renowned Colombian journalist Alejandro Santos Rubino is an act of censorship, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. A Bogotá judge ordered the arrest of Santos, the director of the national weekly newsmagazine Semana, for failing to follow the court’s instructions in a defamation…
CPJ welcomes release of Moussa Kaka
New York, October 7, 2008–The Committee to Protect Jounalists welcomes today’s provisional release of veteran Nigerien journalist Moussa Kaka after more than a year behind bars on anti-state charges. An appeals court in the capital, Niamey, ordered Kaka’s release on bail pending trial by a magistrate court on amended charges of “undermining national territorial integrity…
Egypt detains reporter covering protests
New York, September 26, 2008―The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned by the ongoing detention of a reporter for the independent daily Al-Dustour. Hossam Al Wakeel, 20, was arrested on Wednesday while covering protests that erupted after “the arbitrary closure” of the Al Jazeera School in the Al Ajami district in Alexandria, his lawyer, Khalaf…
Cleric issues fatwa against TV station owners
New York, September 18, 2008–The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about the religious edict issued on September 9 by a top Saudi cleric calling for the death of owners of satellite TV stations that air “immoral” soap operas. Sheikh Saleh al-Lihedan’s fatwa came in response to a question asked on Radio Quran, a…
Filmmaker Berends freed, Nigerian still faces questioning
New York, September 9, 2008—U.S. filmmaker Andrew Berends, detained by Nigerian security officials for 10 days, was aboard a flight to Germany late today, two U.S. State Department officials told the Committee to Protect Journalists. Berends, the focus of an international advocacy effort, was scheduled to fly from Frankfurt, Germany, to the United States, they…
Leading independent editor sentenced to six months in jail
Leading independent editor sentenced to six months in jail New York, March 26, 2008―The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the six-month jail term handed down today to a leading Egyptian editor and urges the appeals court to overturn the conviction. The Boulak Abul Ela Court of Misdemeanor, on the outskirts of Cairo, sentenced Ibrahim Eissa,…