Zimbabwean reporter Columbus Mavhunga faces jail over drone reporting
Lusaka, August 2, 2023—Zimbabwean authorities should immediately drop illegal drone-flying charges against reporter Columbus Mavhunga and ensure that journalists can freely carry out their work without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On July 23, police arrested Mavhunga, a correspondent for the U.S. Congress-funded broadcaster Voice of America (VOA), after a…
Sri Lankan police arrest, beat journalist Tharindu Uduwaragedara
New York, July 28, 2023—Sri Lankan authorities should immediately and unconditionally release journalist Tharindu Uduwaragedara and investigate allegations that he was beaten by police, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. At around 3 p.m. on Friday, July 28, police arrested Uduwaragedara after he covered a trade union protest in Borella, a suburb of the…
Iranian journalist Seyed Mostafa Jaffari arrested on false news charges
Washington, D.C., July 24, 2023 — Iranian authorities must release journalist Seyed Mostafa Jaffari from prison immediately and stop jailing members of the press for reporting on issues of public interest, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. On Monday, July 24, security forces arrested Jaffari in the central city of Qazvin on charges filed…
Botswana intelligence agents detain 2 journalists overnight
Lusaka, July 21, 2023 – In response to the detention on Thursday, July 20, of Botswana journalists Ryder Gabathuse and Innocent Selatlhwa by agents of the Directorate of Intelligence and Security Services, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement of condemnation: “The brazen detentions of Botswanan journalists Ryder Gabathuse and Innocent Selatlhwa and…
Journalist Omed Baroshky arrested in Iraqi Kurdistan
Beirut, July 21, 2023 – Iraqi Kurdish authorities should immediately disclose the whereabouts of journalist Omed Baroshky and ensure journalists are not arrested for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On the evening of Thursday, July 20, Asayish security forces raided Baroshky’s home in the northwest city of Duhok and arrested him,…
Taliban intelligence forces detain Afghan journalist Irfanullah Baidar
New York, July 21, 2023 — The Taliban must immediately release journalist Irfanullah Baidar and stop detaining members of the press in Afghanistan, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On July 12, officers with the Taliban General Directorate of Intelligence stopped Baidar near the Eidgah Mosque in the eastern city of Jalalabad, covered his head with a sack, and forced him into a vehicle, according to news reports and…
Iranian authorities rearrest journalist Nazila Maroofian
Washington, D.C., July 11, 2023—Iranian authorities should release journalist Nazila Maroofian and drop any charges against her, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On Saturday, July 8, authorities arrested Maroofian, a Kurdish Iranian investigative reporter for the state-run news website Rouydad24, after she responded to a summons at a court in Evin prison in…
Congolese soldiers arrest, beat 3 journalists covering land dispute
Kinshasa, June 30, 2023—Authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo must hold accountable the soldiers who arrested and beat journalists Jeef Ngoyi, Marie-Louise Malou Mbela, and Jiresse Nkelani, and cease detaining journalists covering the news, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Wednesday, June 28, at least 12 soldiers from the Armed Forces…
Turkish journalist Merdan Yanardağ arrested over political commentary
Istanbul, June 28, 2023—Turkish authorities should release journalist Merdan Yanardağ and stop hindering free speech and commentary in the country, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On Monday, June 26, police detained Yanardağ, chief editor for the critical online outlet and TV broadcaster TELE1, at the Istanbul studios of his outlet, after he criticized…
Two French journalists flee Yemeni island of Socotra after questioning, house arrest
On May 28, 2023, five armed soldiers and three police chiefs on the Yemeni island of Socotra arrested freelance journalist Quentin Müller and Sylvain Mercadier, co-founder and director of the independent Iraqi news website The Red Line, at their apartment, according to tweets by Müller and Mercadier, who communicated with CPJ via email. The authorities…