03 Mar 11 | Index Index, minipost
Panamanian authorities have expelled two Spanish journalists who reported on a demonstration against mining law reform. Francesco Gomez Nadal and his girlfriend Pilar Chato were detained during Saturday’s protests outside the National Assembly. They were held for almost 48 hours and transferred between three detention centres before being forced to leave. They were charged with “disrupting public order”. Panamanian officials said “foreigners are prohibited from participating in all types of political activities or protests”.
12 Oct 10 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa, minipost, News and features
Two men, a reporter and a photographer said to be from Germany’s Bild am Sonntag newspaper, have been arrested by Iranian officials. They were detained whilst interviewing the son of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani in the city of Tabriz. Mrs Ashtiani’s death sentence, which has been suspended, has provoked international outrage. A spokesman for Iran’s judiciary said the pair did not have the correct media accreditation, whilst a spokesman for Bild am Sonntag said it had no knowledge of the arrests. Iranian prosecutor general Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei stated that “two foreigners posing as journalists have been arrested in Iran”. It is thought Mrs Sistiani’s son and lawyer may also have been arrested.
In a separate development, Tehran-based journalist Angeles Espinosa has had her accreditation cancelled and been ordered to leave Iran within two weeks. The El Pais correspondent is thought to have attracted the authorities’ disapproval for conducting an interview with the son of Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, the late reformist cleric, in July.
