7 June 2006
ANOTHER JOURNALIST GUNNED DOWN
In Iraq, the state-run television channel Al-Iraqiya has had more employees killed than any other media outlet since the start of the U.S.-led occupation in March 2003. At least 11 have been killed, says Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF). On 31 May 2006, Ali Jaafar became the latest casualty.
Jaafar, 24, was shot in front of his brother's auto shop in Al-Shorta al-Rabba, a neighbourhood in southwest Baghdad, reported the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). His colleagues believe Jaafar was killed because he worked for Al-Iraqiya. Insurgents have frequently targeted Al-Iraqiya and its staff because of the station's ties to the U.S.-supported Iraqi government.
According to CPJ, nearly 80 per cent of journalists and media support workers killed in the country since March 2003 have been local Iraqis.
Jaafar's murder came days after two CBS News crew members were killed and a reporter seriously injured in a car-bomb attack in Baghdad (see: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/74781/)
In response to the precarious situation for journalists, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) will be holding a day of action on 15 June 2006 to demand more international support and to appeal for humanitarian assistance for victims of violence.
The National Day of the Press is backed by the Iraqi Journalists' Syndicate, the Kurdistan Journalists Syndicate in Iraq, the Federation of Arab Journalists and the Association of Journalists in the United Arab Emirates.
Visit these links:
- CPJ: http://www.cpj.org/news/2006/mideast/iraq31may06na.html
- RSF: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=17867
- RSF Report "Slaughter in Iraq": http://www.rsf.org/IMG/pdf/Survey_RSF_Iraq_06.pdf
- IFJ: http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?Index=3959&Language=EN
- Iraqi Journalists Rights Defense Association: http://www.ijrda.com/prees/
- Al-Iraqiya: http://english.iraqimedianet.net/
RSS