Islamabad, Dec 23: Two foreign journalists were
allegedly beaten up and detained in Pakistan, very recently
prompting a rights group to call for a probe into the
incidents.
New York Times photographer Akhtar Soomro, a Pakistani
national was detained and reporter Carlotta Gall was allegedly
beaten up in Pakistan on December 19, according to the
Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
Gall, who covers Pakistan and Afghanistan for The Times,
told CPJ that men claiming to be from the special branch of
Pakistan's police, detained Soomro, in his hotel around 8pm,
and seized his computer and camera.
Four men later broke into Gall's room in a separate hotel,
hit her and took away her belongings. She said she had bruises
on her arms, temple, and cheekbone, swelling on her left eye
and a sprained knee.
"They were extremely aggressive and abusive. The leader,
who spoke English, refused to show any ID," Gall said adding
that the men accused her of being in Quetta, the restive
capital of Baluchistan province near the Afghan border,
without permission.
They accused her of interviewing Taliban members in
Pashtunabad, a section of Quetta.
Gall said when she tried to prevent stop them from taking
Soomro, she was told, "He is Pakistani, we can do whatever we
want with him". He was freed unharmed the next day.
"We condemn the beating of our colleague Carlotta Gall
and the detention of Akhtar Soomro. The Pakistani authorities
must investigate this incident immediately and ensure that
journalists are allowed to work freely," CPJ executive
director Joel Simon.
Bureau Report
