Afghanistan: CFWIJ Is Concerned For The Safety Of Storay Karimi And Somaia Valizadeh

Location: Afghanistan
Date: August 6, 2021

Storay Karimi, the only war correspondent associated with Pajhwok Afghan News, had to leave her home this week after she received death threats from extremists. Storay was reporting from the western city of Herat before heading to Kabul. Another woman journalist, Somaia Valizadeh, also expressed her concerns over the control of extremist elements. Somaia voiced that women journalists will have to leave their jobs and livelihood if the Taliban takes Herat.

According to news reports, the Taliban have control of 17 out of the 19 districts of Herat province, threatening the already precarious environment for press freedom. CFWIJ has reported extensively on the violations and threats women journalists have faced for the past months. Unfortunately, they have become vulnerable targets for extremist groups present in the region. We demand Afghan authorities and aid organizations in the country to take immediate steps to protect women journalists and allow them to continue their coverage.

Storay Karimi admits she loves her job. At one point, while reporting on the front lines, she was captured by extremist group fighters. She was warned to report positive news about them, or they will hunt her down. Storay was forced to leave the city of Herat one week after receiving death threats. She was reporting for the Pajhwok news agency in Pashto and Dari— the two main languages in Afghanistan— as well as in English. She highlighted the conflict in the Herat region, a province rich in resources but facing a desperate fight to deter extremist groups like the Taliban.

On August 1, Storay was detained by Taliban insurgents as she was travelling with Shakib Shams, a correspondent for Salam Watandar radio service. According to reports, they were abducted around 10am and kept in custody for 25 minutes. Taliban commander who identified himself as the district Taliban governor pointed a gun at Karimi and ordered her to remove her bulletproof vest. Karimi complied and removed her safety gear. The commander then questioned Karimi and Shams about their news reports and searched through their phones. Then he made the journalists speak to a second commander who ordered them to report positive news. Only after that both Storay and Shakib were released from captivity.

According to Afghan journalism watchdogs, 51 media outlets have already been shut down, and hundreds of news professionals have quit their jobs. In some areas, newsrooms were even looted or destroyed as insurgents threatened the staff to paint them in a positive light or face further consequences. Many fear it is only a matter of time before the extremists carry out the threats.

Somaia Valizadeh, an investigative journalist associated with Khillid Radio, also shared her concerns.  She described how women are forced to stay at home and girls are banned from schools in the areas where extremists have control. Somaia shared that media outlets are being closed in those areas, and journalists have no choice but to flee. According to Somaia, threats do not always come from insurgents, but also extremist clerics, and many times, from the government authorities who want to control the narrative. She mentioned that members of religious establishments often refuse to invite women to their pressers or even speak to them.

The Coalition For Women In Journalism is concerned for Storay, Somaia, and all women journalists risking their lives to report from remote areas. CFWIJ has devised a detailed report on the recent press freedom violations against women journalists. We continue to monitor the situation and document threats to women journalists. The CFWIJ demands the Afghan government take immediate steps to ensure journalists' safety in the region, especially in remote areas with little media coverage. We urge them to provide necessary security to women journalists as they continue to report from conflict zones. CFWIJ stands in solidarity with the courageous women correspondents committed to their work.

The CFWIJ strongly condemns the police brutality against journalists. We demand the immediate return of the press cards seized from the security forces. Policies to intimidate journalists should be abandoned, and journalism should be practiced under the criteria of freedom of the press.

If you have been harassed or abused in any way, and please report the incident by using the following form.