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.
Detained Pakistani Journalist Wazir Released
Editors' Picks
Afghanistan/Pakistan Trending
1
As US Ends Protected Status For Afghans, Thousands Face Deportation And Persecution
2Teenage TikTok Star's Killing Sparks Outrage Over Violence Against Women In Pakistan
3The Taliban's Latest Target? Religious Scholars Who Speak Out
4UN Alarmed By Surge In Deportations Of Afghan Families From Iran
5Trump's Travel Ban Deals New Blow To 'Stranded' Afghans
6Afghan Women Fear They Have Fallen Off West’s Radar Amid Global Conflicts, Aid Cuts
7A Doctor's Mission To Help At-Risk Infants And Mothers In Rural Pakistan
8Unreliable Medical Tests Force Afghans To Seek Treatment Abroad
9Afghan Survivors Speak Out: What The Taliban Does To Imprisoned Women
10Doctors Swamped With Malnourished Children At Afghan Hospital
RFE/RL has been declared an "undesirable organization" by the Russian government.
If you are in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine and hold a Russian passport or are a stateless person residing permanently in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine, please note that you could face fines or imprisonment for sharing, liking, commenting on, or saving our content, or for contacting us.
To find out more, click here.