Newspaper editor kidnapped and beaten by gunmen in presidential guard car

Reporters Without Borders today firmly condemned the abduction and beating of Jamal Amer, the editor of the independent weekly al-Wassat, who was grabbed outside his home on the night of 22 August by gunmen using a presidential guard vehicle, questioned about his work and then beaten before being freed seven hours later. "Although President Ali Abdullah Saleh has voiced his support for press freedom on several occasions, the independent news media continue to be subject to frequent harassment in Yemen," the organisation said. "This case serves as a reminder that it is still very difficult to work as a independent journalist in this country and we call on the interior ministry to conduct a thorough investigation in order to identify those responsible." Amer told Reporters Without Borders he was kidnapped by gunmen waiting outside his home in the capital, Sanaa. He said they forced to him to get into their presidential guard vehicle and drove him blindfolded to an isolated location outside the city. He remembered there was a change of vehicle but he had no idea where they took him. Once there, his abductors questioned him about the people who work with him at the newspaper. They also ordered him to reveal the sources of some of his articles and warned him that he could be subject to further reprisals. They finally beat him up before releasing him seven hours later. Back in the capital, Amer immediately filed a complaint with the interior ministry but the authorities took no action. Al-Wassat has recently carried several articles criticising the government. One was particular critical of last month's crackdown on protests and rioting about fuel price hikes in which 22 people died.