1.   Journalists are regularly imprisoned in Turkey, where restrictive press laws have been in effect for decades.

2.   Journalists were imprisoned in record numbers around the world last year, according to an annual survey released Thursday in Washington.

3.   Turkey has the shameful distinction of imprisoning more journalists than any country in the world.

4.   At the same time, the government has expelled foreign reporters and imprisoned Chinese journalists.

5.   China and Ethiopia topped the list of countries to have imprisoned journalists, the group said.

6.   Four journalists have been imprisoned this year for libel in cases filed by government politicians.

7.   Four Egyptian journalists have been imprisoned for libel this year.

8.   Several journalists have been imprisoned since then on charges ranging from disclosing state secrets to causing offense to the government.

9.   The legislation also allows the government to ban foreign reporters from the country and imprison journalists who violate as-yet unspecified standards.

10.   The official also disputed reports that imprisoned Hong Kong journalist Xi Yang is being held in poor conditions.