Abdul Rehman Afridi, editor of the local newspaper Daily Sitara in Jacobabad, Sindh province and vice president of the Jacobabad Press Club was attacked on 8 September. He was attacked by a gang angered at his publication of news stories about the district government’s mismanagement of relief material intended for flood victims. Afridi was threatened at the newspaper’s office and then beaten with wooden sticks.
Footballer Wayne Rooney has launched legal action against the Daily Mirror for breach of privacy. Rooney is suing the newspaper after it published articles making fresh allegations about his sex life. He is claiming for invasion of privacy and breach of the Data Protection Act. Last month the England player sued the Sun for libel over the suggestion that he booked a holiday before his team were knocked out of the World Cup.
Two independent radio stations were attacked by Islamist militia in Mogadishu on 19 September. Radio Horn Afrik was vandalised and looted by Al-Shabaab, while Global Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) was taken over by Hizbul Islam, who are now using the station to broadcast their own propaganda. Journalists at Horn Afrik were driven from the building by armed men. Cassettes and CDs were then destroyed. According to the transitional government in Mogadishu, five radio stations in the city have now been attacked or forcibly taken over by Islamist rebels.
A Russian gay rights activist who went missing from a Moscow airport last week, said he was kidnapped by state security agents. Nikolai Alekseyev was told he would have to undergo further security checks as he prepared for his flight to Geneva on 15 September. He was then driven to a police station in Kashira where he was detained for two days. The men holding him demanded that he withdraw a complaint from the European Court of Human Rights against Moscow’s ban on gay rights rallies. He refused to sign any documents. News agencies received text messages that appeared to be from the activist saying he was seeking political asylum in Belarus. Alekseyev later confirmed these were sent by his captors. He was released on 18 September.