Mexico is home to more than 100 Afghan journalists fleeing the Taliban

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According to the statement, the group of 124 people whose lives would have been in danger in Afghanistan was made up of media workers and their families, including children. They arrived at Mexico City International Airport in the early hours of Wednesday.

Mexico’s Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said the decision to offer protection to journalists is “congruent with Mexico’s historical position.”

“These are those who are risking their lives to report, to communicate; they are committed to freedom of expression,” he said, adding that the group included journalists and local staff members from “many media outlets.” who have applied for humanitarian visas in Mexico “in recent events. “

The Foreign Ministry added in the statement that travel and living costs during its stay in Mexico will be covered by private sponsors and civil society organizations.

The Committee to Protect Journalists has warned that Afghan journalists face extreme dangers amid the Taliban acquisition.

At least three Afghan women journalists have been killed this year, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF), while one was shot dead by a gunman in December 2020.

New York Times journalist Michael Slackman speaks at a press conference to welcome a group of journalists and media correspondents to Mexico.

The New York Times said Wednesday that a group of Afghans who worked at the newspaper, along with their families, were part of the group.

According to a statement issued by the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the director of International News of the New York Times, Michael Slackman, thanked Mexico for its support and “the rapid sending by the Mexican government of safe transportation for journalists.”

In the statement, Slackman also urged “the entire international community to follow this example and continue to work on behalf of the brave Afghan journalists who are still in danger.”

Western media are working to evacuate local journalists from Afghanistan

RSF said the Taliban were already imposing severe restrictions on the media, although it made promises about protecting press freedom.

“Officially, the new Afghan authorities have not issued any regulations, but the media and journalists are being treated arbitrarily,” RSF Secretary General Christophe Deloire said in a statement.

The group said at least ten journalists had been subjected to violence or threats while working on the streets of Kabul and Jalalabad last week.

Many of the Western media outlets that had a presence in Afghanistan have evacuated their foreign correspondents and local staff in recent weeks, following the Taliban’s capture.

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