DAMASCUS, Aug 9, 2023 (AFP) – A Syrian television journalist and two soldiers were killed on Wednesday when a roadside bomb exploded in the southern province of Daraa, state media reported. “Correspondent Firas al-Ahmad from (privately owned) Sama TV and two members of our armed forces were killed by an explosive device” as they returned from a counternarcotics operation in the province, state television said. “Terrorists” had planted the bomb, it added. Daraa was the […]
Tag: Journalist
US reporter denied bail at first public Russian court hearing
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Tuesday 4/18/2023 US reporter Evan Gershkovich appeared at a Moscow court on Tuesday, in the first partly open hearing since his arrest for alleged espionage, in a case that has drawn international condemnation. Wearing jeans and a blue checked shirt, Gershkovich crossed his arms and smiled before the start of the appeal hearing against his pre-trial detention. But, after a short hearing, his request for release on bail was turned […]
The Russian ‘fortress’ where US journalist is held
by AFP Moscow bureau with Barbara Wojazer in Warsaw Agence France-Presse MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — US journalist Evan Gershkovich’s court appearance in Moscow on Tuesday will be a rare break from his isolation in Lefortovo prison — a symbol of repression since Soviet times. The detention facility, which has housed a long list of high-profile figures, is engineered by the FSB security service to keep detainees in near-total solitude. “It’s a frozen prison, they’re isolating […]
Musk ‘temporarily’ suspends another journalist’s Twitter account
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) – Elon Musk temporarily suspended the Twitter account of another journalist, the latest in a series of suspensions after owner Elon Musk complained that personal information endangering his family was being divulged. “Elon Musk suspended my Twitter account,” Taylor Lorenz, a Washington Post reporter, said on her Substack page. Lorenz, who covers technology, said the suspension by Musk came after she and a colleague “attempted to reach him several times” for comment […]
Japanese journalist to be deported from Myanmar
YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — A Japanese journalist arrested while covering the aftermath of the Myanmar coup is to be deported, Tokyo said Friday, after charges against him were dropped as a diplomatic gesture. Yuki Kitazumi, held in Yangon’s Insein prison since his arrest last month, was one of at least 80 reporters detained during the junta’s crackdown on anti-coup dissent. Security forces have killed more than 780 people since protests erupted following the February 1 […]
UN says 38 dead in Myanmar’s ‘bloodiest’ day since coup
YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — At least 38 people died Wednesday in the “bloodiest” day of Myanmar’s crisis, the United Nations said, as the military junta defied growing international condemnation of its coup with a violent crackdown that the US said left it “appalled and revulsed.” Myanmar has been in turmoil since February 1 when the military ousted and detained civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, ending the nation’s decade-long experiment with democracy and sparking […]
‘I can’t breathe’ were Khashoggi’s final words, report says
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Jamal Khashoggi’s final words were “I can’t breathe,” CNN said Sunday, citing a source who has read the transcript of an audio tape of the final moments before the journalist’s murder. The source told the US network the transcript made clear the killing was premeditated, and suggests several phone calls were made to give briefings on the progress. CNN said Turkish officials believe those calls were made to top officials […]
Turkey searches Saudi consulate as Trump speaks of ‘rogue killers’
by Fulya Ozerkan and Stuart Williams Agence France Presse ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) — Turkish police on Monday searched the Saudi consulate in Istanbul for the first time since journalist Jamal Khashoggi went missing, as US President Donald Trump floated the idea that “rogue killers” could be to blame for his disappearance. Khashoggi, a Saudi national and US resident who became increasingly critical of powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has not been seen since he […]
Saudi crown prince ordered op against missing journalist: report
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Saudi Arabia’s crown prince and de facto ruler ordered an operation targeting journalist and US resident Jamal Khashoggi, who has been missing for more than a week, The Washington Post reported Wednesday citing US intelligence intercepts. Khashoggi — a US resident and one of the more outspoken critics of the regime of King Salman and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman — disappeared after entering the Saudi consulate in […]
US pressures Saudi prince over missing journalist
by Sebastian Smith Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump on Wednesday demanded Saudi Arabia provide answers over the disappearance of respected journalist Jamal Khashoggi, whom Turkish officials suspect was murdered after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. The Trump administration sharply upped the pressure, reversing an initially low key response after Washington Post contributor Khashoggi vanished on October 2. Trump said he had talked “more than once” and “at […]
Pompeo calls for ‘transparent’ Saudi probe into journalist’s disappearance
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday called for a thorough and open probe by Washington’s ally Saudi Arabia into the disappearance of journalist and Riyadh critic Jamal Khashoggi. “We call on the government of Saudi Arabia to support a thorough investigation of Mr Khashoggi’s disappearance and to be transparent about the results of that investigation,” Pompeo said in a statement, after President Donald Trump voiced concern for Khashoggi, […]
Erdogan asks Riyadh to ‘prove’ journalist left consulate
by Raziye Akkoc with Fulya Ozerkan in Istanbul Agence France Presse ANKARA, Turkey (AFP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday asked Saudi officials to prove their claim that missing journalist and Riyadh critic Jamal Khashoggi left the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Erdogan’s comments’ came after media reports said his government sought permission from Saudi authorities to search the consulate premises in Istanbul. Khashoggi, a Washington Post contributor, vanished last Tuesday after entering the […]
