South Sudan security forces detain 6 state media employees
Nairobi, January 6, 2023—South Sudanese authorities should immediately and unconditionally release all journalists detained this week and ensure the press can work freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Tuesday, January 3, agents with the National Security Service detained six journalists with the state-run South Sudan Broadcasting Corporation, according to multiple media reports…
CPJ condemns November detention of WSJ reporter in Arizona
Washington, D.C., January 5, 2023—The Phoenix Police Department should conduct a thorough investigation into the November detention of Wall Street Journal reporter Dion Rabouin and ensure that members of the press are able to work without fear of harassment, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. On November 23, a police officer detained and handcuffed…
Algerian authorities arrest journalist Ihsane el-Kadi, shutter outlets Radio M and Maghreb Emergent
New York, December 27, 2022 – Algerian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Ihsane el-Kadi and allow the local independent broadcaster Radio M and news website Maghreb Emergent to work freely, the Committee to Protect journalists said Tuesday. On December 24, plainclothes police officers arrested el-Kadi, editor-in-chief of both outlets, from his home in…
Taliban intelligence officials beat, interrogate journalist Zabihullah Noori
New York, December 22, 2022 – Taliban authorities must investigate the 48-hour detention and cruel assault of Afghan journalist Zabihullah Noori, and hold its intelligence agency to account for the ongoing crackdown on members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On December 9, around 50 armed officers surrounded and entered the…
Belarusian journalist Syarhei Chihrin detained for 7 days on extremism charges
Paris, December 20, 2022 — Belarusian authorities should immediately release journalist Syarhei Chihrin and stop using the country’s extremism legislation against members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On December 16, security forces in the southwestern city of Slonim detained Chihrin and a local court ordered him to be held for…
Ethiopia must release journalist Meskerem Abera after second detention this year
Nairobi, December 20, 2022 –Ethiopian police should unconditionally release online journalist Meskerem Abera and cease harassing members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. Federal police detained Meskerem, the founder and editor of private YouTube-based media outlet Ethio Nikat Media, in the capital Addis Ababa on December 13, her husband, Fitsum Gebremichael, told CPJ by phone….
Kazakh financial police arrest investigative journalist Mikhail Kozachkov
New York, December 19, 2022—Kazakh authorities should release investigative journalist Mikhail Kozachkov immediately and ensure that members of the press are not prosecuted in retaliation for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. On Sunday, December 18, officers from Kazakhstan’s Financial Monitoring Agency (FMA) in the southern city of Almaty arrested Kozachkov, who…
Turkish journalist Sinan Aygül arrested under new ‘disinformation’ law
Istanbul, December 15, 2022 – Turkish authorities should immediately release journalist Sinan Aygül and reform the country’s new anti-disinformation law to ensure that it is not used to harass and imprison members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. On Wednesday, December 14, authorities in the eastern province of Bitlis arrested Aygül,…
Myanmar’s jailing of journalists enters harsh new phase
Myanmar’s military regime has doubled down on its repression of journalists as it tightens it grip on the country following its democracy-crushing coup on February 1, 2021. After arresting scores of journalists to block coverage of its abuses and resistance to the takeover, its second year in power saw the handing down of harsh prison…
Former Belsat TV contributor Larysa Shchyrakova detained in Belarus on undisclosed charges
Paris, December 9, 2022 — Belarusian authorities should publicly disclose the reason for former Belsat TV journalist Larysa Shchyrakova’s arrest or release her immediately, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Tuesday, December 6, authorities in the southeastern city of Homel detained Shchyrakova, a former journalist with the banned Poland-based independent broadcaster Belsat TV,…