Ali Al-Mashhadani, an Iraqi cameraman employed by the Reuters news agency, was arrested on July 26 by US troops while he was visiting the Iraqi parliament press centre in Baghdad's Green Zone.
"Mashhadani has been held without charge by the US military since 26 July and must be freed at once," Paris-based Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) said. "It is unacceptable that US troops arrest a journalist and hold him on security grounds."
The US military said they were detaining Mashhadani because "he has been assessed to be a threat to the security of Iraq and coalition forces." It is believed he is being held at Camp Cropper, a US base near Baghdad airport.
US troops previously detained Mashhadani from August 2005 to January 2006 after examining his camera and finding video and photos of Sunni insurgent activity in the western province of Anbar. He was detained again later in 2006 for two weeks. No charge has ever been brought against him.
Ahmed Nouri, an Iraqi cameraman employed by the Associated Press, was arrested by US troops on June 4 in Tikrit (180 km north of Baghdad), and is still being held on security grounds at a US base in Tikrit.
