Pakistan's media regulatory agency has suspended the operating license of the country's leading news channel after a complaint from the Pakistani military.
The regulatory agency announced the decision on June 6 to suspend the license for Geo News for 15 days for reporting that the military's Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) agency was behind the April shooting of one of the channel's most popular journalists, Hamid Mir.
The agency also imposed a fine of around $100,000.
It said that if the fine is not paid within 15 days the suspension of broadcasting would be prolonged.
The London-based human rights group Amnesty International decried the move against Geo News as a "politically motivated attack" targeting the network because of its perceived bias against the military.
Geo News announced on June 6 that it was suing the ISI for defamation for calling the station "antistate."
Geo released a statement in a newspaper owned by its parent company that said "8,000 journalists, workers, and professionals [of the station] and their families are not only being harassed but also attacked and tortured across Pakistan."
The regulatory agency announced the decision on June 6 to suspend the license for Geo News for 15 days for reporting that the military's Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) agency was behind the April shooting of one of the channel's most popular journalists, Hamid Mir.
The agency also imposed a fine of around $100,000.
It said that if the fine is not paid within 15 days the suspension of broadcasting would be prolonged.
The London-based human rights group Amnesty International decried the move against Geo News as a "politically motivated attack" targeting the network because of its perceived bias against the military.
Geo News announced on June 6 that it was suing the ISI for defamation for calling the station "antistate."
Geo released a statement in a newspaper owned by its parent company that said "8,000 journalists, workers, and professionals [of the station] and their families are not only being harassed but also attacked and tortured across Pakistan."