Yoani Sanchez detained in Cuba, outlet says

Cuban authorities detained independent journalist Yoani Sanchez in Havana on Thursday, the digital newspaper she founded and directs, 14ymedio, reported.

The outlet said Sanchez, 51, was taken by political police as she left her home in the Nuevo Vedado neighborhood to go shopping. It said she notified colleagues of her detention in a brief text message and that there had been no further news from her.

14ymedio regularly denounces official censorship and harassment of government critics. Sanchez won the Ortega y Gasset Prize in 2008 and was listed by Time magazine that year among the 100 most influential people in the world.

The outlet said authorities had detained several contributors to opposition media in recent weeks and later released them with fines or warnings.