Malian authorities on Thursday suspended one of the country's main news channels for two months following criticism of the ruling junta by one of its star journalists.

In a decision seen by AFP, the High Authority for Communication (HAC) argued that "the grievances alleged against Joliba TV News constitute serious and repeated breaches and violations of the substantive provisions of the journalistic code of ethics in Mali".

Joliba TV News, the media company, confirmed the information to AFP.

The chain had on October 13 been put on notice over a September 30 editorial by Mohamed Halidou Attaher.

According to the HAC, it included "defamatory remarks and unfounded accusations concerning the regulatory body... the state of freedom of expression in Mali and the authorities of the transition".

Halidou's comments followed the triumphant return of Prime Minister Abdoulaye Maiga from the UN General Assembly in New York, where he had delivered an incendiary speech against France.

"Intolerance is on the rise in our country", the journalist said in his editorial. "Freedom of expression is in danger, and so is democracy. We are in the dictatorship of one-track thinking."

He went on: "For the time being, the colonels in power govern with a mob mentality, and the mob by definition does not think."

He also urged the HAC to play its "full role" in handling social media abuse.

The formal notice to the channel provoked indignant reactions by Malian journalists worried about freedom of expression and press freedom in the country.

In August, Human Rights Watch denounced the "detention and harassment of alleged critics" in Mali since the junta came to power after coups in 2020 and 2021.

The rights watchdog listed the various obstacles to freedom of expression, including the expulsion of journalists, suspended accreditations for foreign correspondents and the "harassment" of government critics by "online commentators".

It said the "repression of the media and detentions of critics have had a chilling effect on political life and civic space".

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