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CPJ Says Journalist Imprisonments Highest In Three Decades, Iran Worst Offender


Mohammad Basati is just one of the journalist sentenced to prison in Iran in 2022.
Mohammad Basati is just one of the journalist sentenced to prison in Iran in 2022.

The number of journalists imprisoned worldwide is the highest ever recorded in the 30 years since the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has issued its prison census, the organization said on December 14. A record 363 journalists were behind bars at the beginning of December -- a 20 percent increase over 2021, CPJ's annual prison census showed. Iran is the world’s worst jailer of journalists, with 62 imprisoned as authorities ruthlessly crack down on the nationwide protests that erupted in September. Iran is followed by China, Myanmar, Turkey, and Belarus.

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