New Delhi: Pakistan government has "blocked" the website of the US-based weekly 'South Asia Tribune', which has put out several stories against Pervez Musharraf's regime, including "ill health of country's nuclear assets" and exposing the racket involved in collection of donations in the name of 'jihad' from expatriate Pakistanis.

According to a statement issued by the weekly, run by leading Pakistani scribe Shaheen Sehbai, it said that Pakistan's telecommunication department has blocked the website throughout the country.

"This is a blatant attack on the freedom of press, as recently the 'South Asia Tribune' had done a number of stories, which exposed the government policies," Sehbai said in the statement from Washington.

Sehbai was working as a journalist with Pakistan's leading daily 'The News', but had to run away from the country and take refuge in the United States after the Musharraf government allegedly started harassing him and his family members.

Commenting on the ban, Sehbai said, "It is a simple case of a military government getting so unnerved by objective and honest reporting that they have decided to deny the Pakistani people their right to information and truth."

He said after he had started the weekly, Pakistani military regime had published advertisements in the local dailies asking the newspapers not to reproduce any of the 'South Asia Tribune' stories published by his weekly.

"This is the second direct attack to silence the voice of freedom and professionalism, which exposes all claims of the government allowing freedom of expression, access to international media and Internet," he said.

PTI