Obstructed

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.

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.

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."

Istanbul, June 6, 2013--Turkish police have targeted journalists photographing law enforcement clashes with protesters in a series of attacks, detentions, and obstructions documented by the Committee to Protect Journalists.

From Cape Town to Lilongwe, four photographers on routine news assignments in major southern Africa cities were assaulted by security officials in the past two weeks. The details differ, but the heavy-handed actions in each case reflect a belief among those responsible for security that they are above the law and not publicly accountable. These recent attacks in southern Africa also highlight a wider phenomenon: Every day, somewhere in the world, news photographers are subjected to physical abuse by security and public officials who wish to suppress or control the powerful message delivered by images.

Istanbul, June 3, 2013--The press has come under fire from both government officials and protesters amid nationwide demonstrations in Turkey, with instances of attacks, obstruction, detention, and vandalism being reported, according to news accounts and local journalists.

Nairobi, May 29, 2013--Ugandan police on Tuesday assaulted and detained several journalists who were among a crowd of demonstrators protesting the government's closure of four independent news outlets, according to news reports and local journalists. The Committee to Protect Journalists said today that the police actions only highlight the government's continuing effort to suppress information concerning a supposed assassination plot.

"Having silenced news outlets for coverage of a critical public issue, Ugandan authorities are now trying to suppress protesters who want to call attention to the censorship," said CPJ East Africa Consultant Tom Rhodes. "The indefinite closure of these media outlets serves as a daily reminder that the government wants to deny its citizens important sources of news and information."

New York, March 25, 2013--The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the violent siege on Sunday of the Media Production City, a complex housing numerous private news outlets in Cairo, an episode that followed a series of inflammatory anti-press comments by President Mohamed Morsi and members of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Nairobi, March 12, 2013--Somali police attacked and obstructed more than a half-dozen journalists who were seeking to cover a rape trial in Mogadishu on Saturday, as authorities continue to struggle in meeting law enforcement and free expression demands in sexual assault cases. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the attacks and calls on authorities to hold the officers accountable.

New York, December 14, 2012--Israeli soldiers assaulted four Palestinian journalists and forced them to strip naked at a checkpoint in the West Bank city of Hebron on Wednesday, according to news reports. Two of the journalists worked for Reuters, and two for local Palestinian news outlets, the reports said.