New York, August 12, 2002—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is alarmed that an Israeli reporter and his photographer came under Israel Defense Forces (IDF) gunfire yesterday in the West Bank town of Tulkarem. On August 11, Gideon Levy, of the Israeli daily Ha’aretz, his photographer, Miki Kratsman, their driver, and a representative from an…
Bogotá, August 9, 2002—The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) detained two newspaper journalists and their driver in Colombia on Tuesday, August 6, freeing them unharmed two days later, CPJ has learned. Iván Noguera and Héctor Fabio Zamora, a correspondent and photographer, respectively, for El Tiempo, Colombia’s largest daily, and their driver, Henry Gómez, were…
August 9, 2002, New York—A court in the Turkish breakaway region of northern Cyprus yesterday sentenced two editors from the opposition daily Afrika to six months in prison for criticizing a Turkish Cypriot leader, according to international press reports and CPJ sources. On Thursday, August 8, Afrika editor-in-chief Sener Levent and editor Memduh Ener were…
New York, August 9, 2002-The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemns yesterday’s court–ordered closure of two Iranian newspapers. This latest ruling brings to 52 the total number of publications that authorities have banned in Iran since April 2000. Tehran’s conservative Press Court yesterday banned the newly launched daily Ayineh-e-Jonoub (formerly a weekly), citing more than…
New York, August 9, 2002—Three journalists who had been sentenced to 30 days of “preventative detention” were released on Wednesday, August 7, on the condition that they remain in the capital, Kigali, and report regularly to the police. However, it is unclear whether the charges against them have been dropped. Robert Sebufirira, Elly MacDowell Kalisa,…
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) strongly protests your government’s closure of the Amman bureau of the Qatar-based satellite television channel Al-Jazeera. On August 7, Information Minister Muhammad Adwan revoked the station’s license to operate in Jordan and barred its staff from working for the station in the country. The move came after a guest on that day’s broadcast of the debate program “Opposite Direction” criticized Jordan’s relationship with Israel.
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply concerned by your government’s recent use of defamation lawsuits and official pressure to silence the Baku-based independent magazine Monitor, which is known for its critical reporting on government officials. We are also troubled by the ongoing harassment of the magazine’s publisher and editor-in-chief, Elmar Huseynov.
New York, August 7, 2002—In a fresh series of actions against Cuba’s independent press corps, Cuban state security agents have harassed, detained, and threatened several independent journalists during the last 10 days. Journalist detainedÁngel Pablo Polanco, 60, director of the independent news agency Noticuba, was detained on July 30. According to Polanco’s wife, at around…
New York, August 7, 2002—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply concerned about the investigation ordered yesterday by a state prosecutor in Lebanon into accusations that Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International (LBCI), a private television station, is responsible for “inciting sectarian strife” and “disturbing general peace.” Under investigation are LBCI’s news editor, Jean Feghali, and…
August 6, 2002 Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba Prime Minister’s Office Singh Durbar Kathmandu, Nepal Via facsimile: +997 1 227286 Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemns the recent detention of Kishor Shrestha, editor of the Nepali-language weekly newspaper Jana Aastha. Although police claimed the detention was because of a July 31 article,…