Deathtrap Iraq

Iraqi authorities prevented the news media from covering bombings in Baghdad and the southern province of Babil on last week, Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF) has reported. “We wonder why the Iraqi authorities forbade journalists to approach the scenes of the bombings and interview victims,” RSF said. “Was it to reduce the broadcasting of shocking images? Was it to conceal successful terrorist...

Scores of Iraqi journalists and political figures rallied Friday to protest what they say is a political effort to censor media that follows steps to crack down on Internet sites, the Associated Press (AP) reported. The demonstration on a Baghdad street known for its book market was held under tight security, as anger builds over government initiatives that critics say are aimed at preventing a...

A member of extremist Sunni group Jaish Mohammed group has confessed to the 2006 rape and murder of prominent Iraqi TV reporter Atwar Bahjat. The confession was made in a videotape broadcast at a press conference Tuesday. Suspect Yasser al-Takhi described how he and three others abducted and killed Bahjat and her two-man crew, Adnan Abdullah and Khaled Mohsen, in the central Iraqi town of Samarra...

There have been two incidents since the start of the withdrawal of US forces from the main Iraqi cities two weeks ago that could indicate a worsening in the environment for the Iraqi media. Paris-based Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) fears a resurgence of threats and violence against journalists not only by armed groups, but also the police and other law enforcement personnel. "Iraqi security...

Al-Jazeera journalist Sami al-Haj, who was imprisoned in Guantánamo Bay, plans to launch a joint legal action with other detainees against former US president George W Bush and other administration officials, for the illegal detention and torture he and others suffered at the hands of US authorities, the Guardian has reported. The case will be initiated by the Guantánamo Justice Centre, a new...

As the US troops begin their withdrawal from Iraqi cities today, many questions remain about the persons still detained by the US forces. Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) has reiterated its call for the release of Reuters photographer Ibrahim Jassam, who has been held since last September. “The US armed forces are now withdrawing from the main Iraqi cities after six years of occupation,” Paris...

An Iraqi sports reporter, Alaa Abdel Wahab, was killed in the northern city of Mosul on Sunday by a car bomb that injured another journalist. Two journalists employed by Al-Iraqiya TV were also injured in a separate car bombing in Baghdad, Paris-based Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) has reported. “We are saddened and appalled by these two bombings,” RSF said. “It is time the slaughter of...

Leaders of journalists unions from around the world travelled to Baghdad at the weekend for a conference on support for media in Iraq— the first international meeting of any kind in the city since the war began six years ago. The Iraqi Journalism Summit 2009 was organised by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the Iraqi Journalists Syndicate and was warmly welcomed by Iraqi Prime...

Spanish investigating judge Santiago Pedraz has decided to reinstate murder charges against the three US soldiers responsible for shelling the Hotel Palestine in Baghdad on April 8, 2003, killing two cameramen, one of them the Spanish. The order came on Thursday. Spain’s National Court had ordered the withdrawal of the charges for lack of evidence in May 2008. José Couso, a Spanish cameraman...

US President Barack Obama intends blocking the court-ordered release of photos depicting the abuse of prisoners by US military personnel in Afghanistan and Iraq. “Given the administration’s pledge last month not to fight the court ruling, as well as President Obama’s emphasis on promoting transparency and open government when he took office, the decision is very disappointing,” Paris-based...