(CPJ/IFEX) – In an 11 August 2000 letter to Syed Salahuddin, Supreme Commander of the Hezb-ul Mujahedeen, CPJ condemned the 10 August bomb attack in Srinagar, which killed one journalist and seriously injured at least six others. Pradeep Bhatia, a photographer for the Indian newspaper “The Hindustan Times”, was one of twelve people killed in […]
(CPJ/IFEX) – In an 11 August 2000 letter to Syed Salahuddin, Supreme Commander of the Hezb-ul Mujahedeen, CPJ condemned the 10 August bomb attack in Srinagar, which killed one journalist and seriously injured at least six others. Pradeep Bhatia, a photographer for the Indian newspaper “The Hindustan Times”, was one of twelve people killed in the attack, police told reporters.
Hezb-ul Mujahedeen spokesman Salim Hashmi was quoted in the 11 August edition of “The Hindustan Times” as saying, “We are deeply grieved over the death of a press photographer and injuries to some journalists.” He said the attack was targeted against Indian security forces.
The attack, however, seemed bound to endanger journalists. Shortly after noon (local time) on Thursday 10 August, a grenade was thrown toward the entrance of the State Bank of India near Residency Road in central Srinagar. The initial blast lured journalists and security forces to the area, and was followed about 15 minutes later by the detonation of a powerful car bomb within a few feet of the crowd.
Among the journalists injured in the bombing, according to local news reports, were Irfan Manzoor, a Zee TV cameraman whose right foot had to be amputated; Habibullah Naqash, a photographer for the daily newspaper “Asian Age”; Fayaz Kabuli, a photographer for the Reuters news agency; Bilal Ahmed Butt, a cameraman for Asia News International; Muhammad Amin War, a free-lance photographer; and I. Tariq, of the “Srinagar News”.
Including the death of Bhatia, nine journalists have been killed in Kashmir since 1989, when the long-running conflict became a full-scale civil war.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to the Supreme Commander of the Hezb-ul Mujahedeen:
– expressing outrage at the killing of Bhatia
– noting that Hezb-ul Mujahedeen’s indiscriminate bombing campaign poses grave
dangers to journalists and other civilians alike
– urging him to abandon these tactics immediately
Appeals To
APPEALS TO:
Mr. Syed Salahuddin
Supreme Commander, Hezb-ul Mujahedeen
Islamabad, Pakistan
Fax: +94 51 252 667
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
