Reporters Without Borders reports:
AP cameraman killed and a photographer wounded
Cameraman Saleh Ibrahim and photographer Mohammed Ibrahim, both Iraqi, came under fire from unidentified gunmen as they arrived on the scene of the explosion on 23 April near Al-Yarmook square, said an AP colleague who requested anonymity for security reasons.
Both men were very badly injured and their colleague drove them to Al-Jumhuri Hospital in Mosul but Saleh Ibrahim, who had three bullets wounds to the chest, died shortly after being admitted. A doctor at the hospital, Rabei Yassin said that Mohammed Ibrahim, who had shrapnel wounds to the head, was treated there before being transferred to an undisclosed destination under US military escort.
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Here’s another story that disappeared quickly. I thought I was unable to put together a diary due to a busy day, so little time, so much outrage. But this story pushed my outrage meter over the edge.
The Washington Post article below was not headlined, it was buried under the story of the arrest of suspects in the helicopter shoot down. The story of yet another reporter’s death is important because without these courageous individuals we will never know the truth of the Iraq situation.
“The police did not interfere in that incident because the U.S. troops were there,” Ali said.
Saleh Ibrahim died soon after arriving at al-Jumhouri Educational Hospital with three bullet wounds to the chest, Rabei Yassin, a doctor, told the Associated Press. Mohammed Ibrahim was treated for shrapnel wounds to the back of the head, Yassin added.
The U.S. military in Mosul did not respond to a request for information about the incident.
A special correspondent for The Washington Post in Mosul, Dlovan Brwary, reported that U.S. forces had surrounded the Yarmouk area in Mosul when the two men went to the scene and photographer Ibrahim got out of the car to take photos.
When the Americans began shooting in the air, the wounded photographer later told Brwary, he “ran immediately to the car, but the Americans shot toward the car.”
The correspondent reported that the car’s windows were broken and that Saleh Ibrahim had been sitting in the back seat. Brwary and four other Iraqi journalists were later briefly detained by U.S. soldiers at the hospital, he said.
Ibrahim’s “fervent dedication to reporting the complete story of Iraq at this historic moment inspired all who knew and worked with him,” said Curley of the Associated Press. “Our deepest sympathy goes to his family.” Ibrahim had five children.
Looks like the press car was shot from behind, similar to Sgrena’s car. My hope is that this story will not be swept away and reporters will not be forgotten. Reporters Without Borders lists all the reporters who have disappeared as well as those who are in jail.
We need these guys. They are risking their lives to give us ‘the story.’
Do not forget them.
Update [2005-4-24 13:5:15 by sybil]:
Another article about the reporters on Yahoo needs some votes to rate it up.
Mohammed’s brother-in-law Saleh Ibrahim was shot and killed. The only information coming from the military is from anonymous sources.
Update [2005-4-24 13:28:40 by sybil]:
The cameraman suffered minor injuries Tuesday during a battle between U.S. soldiers and suspected insurgents, the military said. He was standing next to an alleged insurgent who was killed during the shootout, the statement said.
The military issued a statement then saying the cameraman was shot because his equipment was mistaken for a weapon.
But on Friday, the military said the cameraman was detained because there was probable cause to believe he posed “an imperative threat to coalition forces.”
[…]
Here is the Reporters Without Borders report on the same incident.
CBS freelance cameraman shot and wounded by US soldiers
Reporters Without Borders today called for a thorough and transparent investigation into an incident yesterday near the northern city of Mosul in which US soldiers shot and wounded a freelance cameraman working for the US television network CBS News.
“Once again the US forces have targeted a journalist just doing his job,” the press freedom organization said. Reporters Without Borders pointed out that this was not the first time that US soldiers shot a cameraman after mistaking his camera for a gun. Mazen Dana, a Palestinian working for the British news agency Reuters, was killed in a similar fashion on 17 August 2003 in Baghdad. The US army claimed that the US soldiers involved had acted according to the rules of engagement. […]
During the incident, “an individual that appeared to have a weapon who was standing near the insurgent was shot and injured. This individual turned out to be a reporter who was pointing a video camera. Regretfully, the reporter was injured during the complex and volatile situation,” the statement said, adding that the incident was being investigated.
The journalist, who CBS News said should not be named for his own protection, was taken to a US military hospital for treatment. The US army described his injuries as minor.
At least 52 journalists and media assistants have been killed in Iraq since the start of the war in March 2003, Reporters Without Borders said. […]
Update [2005-4-24 18:33:30 by sybil]:
Saleh Ibrahim, slain AP Cameraman
