Several members of the EU Parliament write a letter in support of RFE/RL reporter Khadija Ismailova.

Illegal in Iran, Radio Farda is getting some “free advertising” (if it can be called that) from the regime. A user who will remain anonymous sent us a photo of a banner in Tehran that reads:

“Radio Farda: If the turnout of the Iranian people in upcoming parliamentary election is less than 50%, the U.S. can easily attack Iran.”

Needless to say, our colleagues in Radio Farda have reported no such thing…but many “thanks” to the Iranian authorities for the shout out.

RFE/RL’s Journalists In Trouble - The Record: 2011

RFE/RL journalists, many of them freelancers, suffered direct repercussions as a result of their work on 19 occasions this year. 

The incidents range from harassment by police to beatings, death threats, detention and prison.  In addition, RFE/RL language service bureaus experienced interference with their operations, including threats of closure and disruption of communications networks. 

RFE/RL’s incident record tracks with the findings of major media and human rights advocacy groups that rate Azerbaijan, Belarus and Turkmenistan as deeply hostile to media freedom…