Watchdog

Pakistani journalist Gohar Wazir has been released from custody and returned home on May 31.

Wazir told RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal that he was detained by security personnel in plainclothes on May 27 in the town of Bannu after reporting on a protest by a group campaigning against perceived brutality by security forces against ethnic Pashtuns.

He was held overnight at a Counterterrorism Police station with about two dozen other people. He was then transferred to a prison in Haripur District. He said he was not abused but that he felt intimidated during his ordeal.

On May 28, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) called for Wazir's immediate release, saying "Gohar Wazir should not have to face arrest merely for doing the job of reporting the news, even reporting on controversial events such as protests by the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement."

CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Steven Butler said "restrictions on Pakistan's media only serve to undermine the strength of Pakistan's democracy."

Wazir is a journalist for the private Khyber News television station.

ISLAMABAD -- Pakistan's army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa has approved death sentences for a retired brigadier and a civilian after they were court-martialed on charges of espionage.

A military statement said on May 30 that Bajwa also approved 14 years of "rigorous imprisonment" for a retired lieutenant general on the same charge.

The three were found guilty of divulging "sensitive information to foreign agencies prejudice to the national security," the statement said.

"The officers were tried under Pakistan Army Act (PAA) and Official Secret Act by separate Field General Court Martial (FGCM) for separate cases," it added.

Those sentenced included retired Lieutenant General Javed Iqbal, retired Brigadier Raja Rizwan, and Wasim Akram, described as a civilian doctor employed by a military organization.

The statement did not provide further details.