She was abducted by Cuban State Security agents.
Yoani Sanchez, director of 14ymedio, was detained by the political police this Thursday at 9:30 a.m., after leaving her home on the way to the market. / Screenshot/14ymedio
Amnesty International, Reporters Without Borders, and the Committee to Protect Journalists demand the immediate release of the journalist and director of 14ymedio
By 14ymedio
HAVANA TIMES – Yoani Sanchez, director of the independent online daily 14ymedio, was abducted by the political police this Thursday at 9:30 a.m. as she was leaving her home in Nuevo Vedado, in Havana’s Plaza de la Revolución municipality, to do some shopping at the neighborhood market. Eight hours later, there is still no news of her whereabouts.
The journalist informed her colleagues at the newspaper that she was stepping out briefly and would return soon. However, barely ten minutes later, she managed to send a message alerting them to her situation in just four words: “The police kidnapped me.” According to several neighbors, the State Security agent who goes by the name Bruno was seen lurking around the ground floor of the building when the detention occurred.
The incident has sparked a wave of outrage and solidarity among Cubans both on and off the island, journalists, activists, and organizations. Numerous international media outlets have reported the news, including El País, El Mundo, and The Objective in Spain; Martí Noticias and the Miami Herald in Florida (United States); and El Universal in Mexico.
Reporters Without Borders has condemned Sanchez’s detention, describing it as an “attack on independent journalism on the island,” while demanding that “the authorities provide information about her whereabouts, guarantee her safety, and release her.” Amnesty International has also condemned the detention in a social media post, as has the Inter American Press Association.
For its part, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) issued a statement strongly condemning the arrest of the newspaper’s director and recalling the recent attacks against independent journalists living on the island. “Cuban authorities should immediately release Yoani Sanchez and disclose her whereabouts,” said Jose Zamora, CPJ’s regional director for the Americas. He added: “Her detention is part of a broader crackdown on independent journalists. Authorities must end these arrests and allow journalists to report without fear of retaliation.”
The incident comes during a week that has already seen two similar cases. Last Monday, Adelth Bonne Gamboa, a contributor to CubaNet, was violently detained by police officers who handcuffed him and took him away in a patrol car. He was released hours later, but not before being fined for his social media posts, having several pieces of work equipment confiscated, and receiving renewed threats of imprisonment.
On Tuesday, it was Camila Acosta’s turn. Also a contributor to CubaNet, she was detained in a public place in the morning by State Security agents, who took her to a police station in handcuffs. The reporter explained on Wednesday that, in addition to disabling her mobile phone, the authorities issued her an official warning instructing her not to publish images of a public official again, as she could face criminal charges for violating personal privacy.
On October 28, Acosta had recorded an agent preventing her from leaving her home. The footage was shared by the media outlet she works with and countless social media accounts. These circumstances were similar to those used to sentence influencer Anna Bensi to two years of restricted freedom.
In mid-September, State Security also detained Henry Constantín, director of La Hora de Cuba. In his case, rather than being released, he was transferred a few days later to Kilo 7 prison in Camagüey, where he remains in pretrial detention on a charge of disobedience.
Several 14ymedio journalists have been victims of this type of repression since the newspaper was founded in May 2014. Reinaldo Escobar has been detained on numerous occasions, most often coinciding with major events such as Barack Obama’s visit in 2016 or Pope Francis’s visit to the island in 2015. For years, the journalist has also been subjected to travel restrictions that have prevented him from leaving Cuba.
Luz Escobar has likewise endured countless instances of being confined to her home, including harassment in front of her young daughters. These incidents ultimately prompted her to go into exile in Spain, where she has lived under asylum since 2022.
Other contributors to the newspaper have also been detained, José Gabriel Barrenechea in 2024 — who was sentenced to six years in prison — and Yudiel Hernández, who spent three months behind bars in 2025 for investigating drug trafficking at a school in Matanzas.
UPDATE: Yoani Sanchez Released and Now Faces Serious Charge
Yoani Sanchez, director of 14ymedio, has been released by Cuban State Security after being held captive for nine hours. The political police detained her this Thursday at 9:30 a.m. as she was leaving her home in Nuevo Vedado—located in Havana’s Plaza de la Revolución municipality—to go shopping at a neighborhood market. According to her own account, she has been charged with “an attempt against the constitutional order.”
First published in Spanish by 14ymedio and translated and posted in English by Havana Times.
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