Alerts

New York, June 18, 2013--The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about the detention of two Iraqi journalists who have been held for two weeks without formal charge or access to a lawyer in connection with the alleged theft of a senior official's notebook.

Cape Town, South Africa, June 18, 2013--All parties in Zimbabwe's government of national unity must respect the responsibility of journalists to document events and report the views of citizens, especially in the run-up to the country's elections in July, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. In four different cases this month, reporters have been attacked apparently in connection with their coverage of the country's two major political parties.

New York, June 18, 2013--The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the official harassment of Sudanese reporter Khalid Ahmed who was detained for three days this month and then interrogated three times since on broad allegations that he "harmed the morale of the armed forces" and denigrated its leaders.

Istanbul, June 17, 2013--Anti-press violence intensified in Istanbul on Sunday as police aggressively sought to obstruct reporters covering demonstrations against the government, according to news reports and CPJ interviews. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities to halt their harassment of the press.

Nairobi, June 17, 2013--Authorities in Burundi have been holding a journalist since Thursday on broad allegations of breaching national security, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about the detention of Lucien Rukevya and calls on authorities to disclose its reasons for holding him.

New York, June 17, 2013--Authorities in Azerbaijan should lift the travel ban imposed against journalist Mehman Huseynov and allow him to travel freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

Istanbul, June 14, 2013--The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the Turkish state media regulator to reverse its decision to penalize four TV stations in connection with their coverage of the demonstrations that have occurred nationwide over the past two weeks.

New York, June 14, 2013--Vietnamese police in Hanoi arrested a blogger on Thursday on accusations of anti-state activity, according to news reports. Pham Viet Dao wrote blogs that were critical of government officials and policies, the reports said.

Dao, 61, who also wrote about politically sensitive issues such as the territorial dispute with China, was accused of violating Article 258 of the Vietnam's penal code for "abusing democratic freedoms," the Ministry of Public Security said in a statement, according to news reports. If convicted, Dao could face a jail term of up to seven years, the reports said.

New York, June 14, 2013---Authorities in Cameroon should investigate reports of journalists being threatened and obstructed from covering the site of an airplane crash on Monday, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

"We are alarmed by reports of obstruction and intimidation involving an officer of Cameroon's top elite security unit, the BIR," said CPJ Africa Advocacy Coordinator Mohamed Keita. "We call on authorities to conduct credible investigations and sanction any officers involved."

New York, June 13, 2013--Iranian authorities have intensified their crackdown on the Internet, including on media outlets and journalists, in the days leading up to Friday's presidential election, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Several opposition websites have reported being briefly hacked, while Google issued a statement on Wednesday that said tens of thousands of Gmail accounts of Iranian users had been targeted.