Afghan court jails Pakistani journalist
Faizullah Khan, a reporter for Karachi-based ARY News, was detained by Afghan authorities in eastern Nangarhar province in April this year. Some reports had earlier suggested Faizullah was on assignment to interview Taliban leaders as part of his professional duties.
“A panel of three-judges in eastern Nangarhar province has convicted Faizullah Khan,” a Pakistani embassy official said, while speaking from Kabul via phone.
Faizullah was also accused of spying; however, the bench dropped espionage charges and jailed him for illegal entry to Afghanistan, his Afghan lawyer says.
An Afghan source in Jalalabad, who is privy to the court’s proceedings, said the judges also mentioned Faizullah Khan’s attempt of interviewing the Taliban in the verdict.
An appeal against the conviction will be filed in an Afghan High Court, a source said.
Pakistani embassy in Kabul and the country’s consulate in Jalalabad had been actively involved to help the journalist in the legal battle, the embassy spokesman, Akhtar Munir said, talking to The Express Tribune from Kabul.
He said Ambassador Abrar Hussain had held a series of meetings with key ministers and senior officials to secure the release of the journalist. “The embassy will continue efforts to help the Pakistani journalist while using all legal options,” the spokesman said.
Sources said South Asian Free Media Association (Safma) Afghan chapter had been contacted in Kabul to seek its help in the release of the Pakistani journalist. However Safma’s in-charge in Kabul had called for a letter from Safma office-bearers in Pakistan.
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) urged the Afghanistan and Pakistan governments to act urgently for safe return of the journalist.
International media groups say both Pakistan and Afghanistan are dangerous regions for journalists to operate with poor safety and security situations and impunity in attacks on journalists.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 14th, 2014.
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Thanks for posting this important story. It is shocking how press freedom is so threatened.
Reblogged at: https://tiffany267.wordpress.com/2014/07/18/afghanistan-imprisons-journalist-for-crossing-border
@Sudhanshu Swami: Once in history, all of North India was ruled by Pashtun dynasties and Delhi was our capital. India should become part of Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
@QADRI THE GREAT Once and mostly in history, Pakistani area was under Afghani rulers. So Pakistan should go back under rule of Afghanistan. I dont understand that what was need of making Pakistan, they could join their Parental Afghanistan. Afghanistan was muslim country, Pakistan's all heros are Afghani then why unnecessarily created Pakistan !
The biggest joke here is that Afghanistan has travel documents. Too funny. LOL!!!
Shame on our government and establishment.All the Afghani people should have been expelled from Pakistan long ago.Rather to allow them to come to Pakistan in Russia-Afghan war was a big blunder and now Mr.Hamid Gul, the advocate of Afghan Jihad, should show some moral courage to free this man from his friends in Afghanistan.
What a news!!!!!!It has really upset and depressed me.Afghanistan has punished a Pakistani Citizen for a crime which it's every Citizen is commiting in Pakistan in form of illegal stay and we do not have guts/courage to punish Afghanis.
Shame on us, but our leaders and establishment has no element of shame in them.This news is shocking for me.Afghanis should be wiped out from Pakistan, if we want to have peace.
@Bakhtiyar Ghazi Khan:
Correction!! Pakistan is not a muslim Nation; it is a country made up of muslim and secular citizens.
Rex Minor
If Pakistan started arresting Awgahnis on illegal border crossing, in one year half population of Awganistan would sentence to Jail in Pakistan...
Daily about Fifty thousand Awgani people come to Pakistan and only few have proper Visa...
@Someone:
If ten Afghans are jailed for illegal stay in each city they live in Pakistan. They will flee Pakistan like they fled their own homeland on the pretext of soviet war, otherwise they came here for better future for themselves & their children and destroy our society. Pakistani government and the world were and are the proud helping hand in destruction of Pakistani by them.
Instead of cry; the government and society should take the corrective measures without further waste of time to tackle this menace as already lot of precious time has been last which allowed them to have strong foothold in the region and around the globe under the patronage of our foes.
A peshwary
@Bakhtiyar Ghazi Khan:
Purely a Pakistani day dreaming, You and Qadri need to be awakened from the sleep, in recent years Afghanistan has become a much better state beyond your imagination.
A Peshawary.
@QADRI THE GREAT: Why does Pakistan believe it defeated the Soviets? Not one Pakistani soldier fought against the Soviets - you never killed/wounded a Soviet soldier nor suffered any casualties. You used your territory for recruiting, training, and sanctuary - not one bit different than what you have done for the last 12 years with the Haqqani.
@QADRI THE GREAT: I think a dose of detoxification is in order.
@QADRI THE GREAT: Its also possible pakistan become one of the province of afghanistan!! keep it mind as well.
When are we jailing 2.8 million illegal Afghans?
Errr...
3m Afghans in Pakistan 1.3m all illegals....
Poor guy must have confirmed Indian and Afghan Agents back terrorists in Pakistan
@QADRI THE GREAT: Good point; now turn it around and you will see the greater Afghanistan with direct access to warm waters. All non Pashto people will join the Kashmir province!
Rex Minor
Where are all these journalists now who start doing dharna's if even a needle pricks them - They only do this drama when something goes tits up in PK but are mum when sometghing happens from across the borders! Sold out thick heads!
Most of Afghan has pushtoon. They chose a pushton president, Hamid. All pushtoons are brothers. They'll join Pakistan and be brothers with KPK. Nothing can seperate pakhtoon blood. Afghanistan will become 5th province of Pakistan, as it was once during the 80s till 90s. Due to corrupt gov't we lost Afghanistan like Bangladesh. Afghanistan even use our currency. But if we stand together with Qadri, the pakhtoons will forgive us for neglecting them and once again join us through a vote. They already voted a pakhtoon, nothing stops them from joining Pakistan. All we need is Qadri, he has true vision and can unite Afghanistan and Pakistan, both muslim countries. Afghanistan has $1 trillion of minerals and it'll benefit both Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Fair enough,if he was without travel documents,the action is legal.As for the millions of illegal Afghan refugees,I have said it before too,send them back to their country,there can be no peace in Pakistan with so many illegal Afghanis.Its time for them to go home.Their documents should be checked first and the illegal ones need to be jailed first before thrown back to where they came from.
Current Afghan government is a racist and backwards country based on hate against other Muslim nations like Iran, Pakistan, Arabs, and Turks. This government does not represent the common Afghan people living in the villages in Afghanistan. I should know as I am a Pashtoon living in the border region.
Puppet Afghan government is propped up by Non-Muslim powers like US, Russia, India, Israel. Its time of reckoning is coming, unless it deals with justice with its Muslim neighbors and respects the rights of Pashtoons.
@QADRI THE GREAT:
Eh? What are you talking about? Stop taking sleeping pills.
@QADRI THE GREAT: you must be dreaming when you wrote about 5th province & if it was a joke then it was in bad taste.
We've lost face even in front of Afghanistan. There used to be a time when we stood against the soviets. That day and today where Afghan looks us in the eyes and we've become nothing more or less than what Afghanistan used to be under Taliban. Only Qadri's revolution is a solution. He can even unite both countries to make one. Afghanistan can be our 5th province