Cambodia jails journalist Ros Sokhet for criticizing Prime Minister Hun Sen
Bangkok, November 13, 2020 – The Committee to Protect Journalists today strongly condemned the sentencing of Cambodian journalist and publisher Ros Sokhet and called for his immediate and unconditional release. Phnom Penh’s Municipal Court convicted Sokhet and handed him an 18-month prison sentence on November 11, four months after he was arrested for Facebook posts…
Azerbaijani journalist Afgan Sadygov sentenced to seven years in prison
New York, November 4, 2020 – Azerbaijani authorities should release journalist Afgan Sadygov and drop all charges against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Yesterday, Baku Grave Crimes Court sentenced Sadygov, chief editor of the independent news website Azel.tv, to seven years in prison, according to news reports, his wife Sevinch Sadygova, and his lawyer Elchin Sadygov, both…
CPJ condemns Montenegro High Court conviction of investigative journalist Jovo Martinović
New York, October 8, 2020–Montenegro’s High Court in the capital, Podgorica, today found investigative journalist Jovo Martinović guilty in a retrial and sentenced him to one year in prison for drug trafficking, according to news reports; the court acquitted him of charges of criminal organization. Martinović, an investigative freelance journalist who covers organized crime, already…
Saudi court sentences 2 journalists to prison following 2017 arrests
New York, September 4, 2020 – A Saudi specialized criminal court yesterday sentenced journalists Ahmed al-Suwian and Fahd al-Sunaidi to three and three and a half years in prison, respectively, following their arrests in 2017, according to news reports and Josh Cooper, deputy director at Al-Qst, a London-based human rights organization, who communicated with CPJ…
Iranian journalist Nada Sabouri begins 3.5-year jail term in 2014 protest case
Washington, D.C., September 2, 2020 — Iranian authorities should release journalist Nada Sabouri immediately and cease arbitrarily jailing members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On August 7, Sabouri, a freelance sports reporter, began a 3.5-year jail term at Tehran’s Evin prison, five years after she was originally sentenced, according to…
CPJ welcomes sentence in Miroslava Breach murder case, urges further investigation
Mexico City, August 24, 2020 – A federal court in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua sentenced Juan Carlos Moreno to 50 years in prison on August 21 for his participation in the murder of journalist Miroslava Breach Velducea on March 23, 2017, according to a statement by Propuesta Cívica, a legal nonprofit organization that…
Algerian journalist Khaled Drareni sentenced to 3 years in prison over protest coverage
New York, August 10, 2020 – In response to an Algerian court’s sentencing of journalist Khaled Drareni to three years in prison today, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “Khaled Drareni’s only crime was covering the news. He should not spend one day in jail for doing his job,” said CPJ Middle…
Libyan National Army ‘sentences’ freelance photojournalist Ismail Abuzreiba al-Zway to 15 years
Washington, D.C., August 4, 2020–The Libyan National Army should immediately release photojournalist Ismail Abuzreiba al-Zway, and stop prosecuting journalists in secret trials and in military courts, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. In a secret trial proceeding held in May 2020, a military court in Benghazi, a city in eastern Libya controlled by the…
Saudi court sentences 8 for Jamal Khashoggi killing
New York, December 23, 2019 — The Saudi public prosecutor’s office announced today that a court had sentenced five people to death and three to jail terms for their roles in the October 2018 killing of Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, which took place in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, according to…