AP correspondent receives threats [Archives:2005/864/Local News]

The correspondent of the Associated Press and APTN TV appealed to the Yemeni Journalists Sydnicate (YJS) to take an action towards the threats he has been receiving during the last few weeks. In a letter addressed to the YJS chairman and board members, Ahmed al-Haj said that he has received threats from people who told him through his relatives to “stop politics business and opposition”. He pointed out that the following days, security men wearing folk dress kidnapped one of his assistants working in his office located at Zubairi street and took him Tuesday, July 26th to the 22 May police station where he was interrogated for three and a half hours at night. “He was beaten up and tortured and questioned about my movements, the people who come to the office from the US embassy and foreigners as if my work as a journalist has become so suspicious. After they failed to force him to spy on me in the office, he was released and came back to the office only 4 am,” the letter explained. He further said tat his landline phone service in the office was cut in addition to the monitoring of his movement, email address and the office. “Such kind of practices and threats are a danger to me and a violation to my constitutional, humanitarian rights as a citizen and a journalist,” the letter said. Al-Haj urged the YJS to take the responsibility and address the authorities concerned to stop such practices which are against the law.
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