Iraq

(CPJ/IFEX) – The following is an 18 August 2004 CPJ press release: Iraq: Abducted journalist threatened New York, August 18, 2004 – The Committee to Protect Journalists is extremely concerned by reports today that an armed group in Iraq has threatened to kill the abducted American journalist Micah Garen in 48 hours unless U.S. forces […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has urged the forces fighting in Iraq to respect the lives of journalists following the 15 August 2004 death of freelance Iraqi newsman Mahmoud Hamid Abbas in Fallujah. Abbas worked for the German television network Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF). The British news agency Reuters also reported that one of its photographers, Ali […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – The following is a 16 August 2004 CPJ press release: IRAQ: Iraqi authorities ban journalists from Najaf New York, August 16, 2004 – The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemns attempts during the weekend by Iraqi authorities to bar media from the Iraqi city of Najaf, where U.S. and Iraqi forces have been […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – The following is a CPJ press release: IRAQ: Cameraman for German television killed New York, August 17, 2004 – An Iraqi cameraman working for the German television station Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF) was killed August 15 in Fallujah, the station confirmed today. Mahmoud Hamid Abbas, 32, also worked as a producer and editor […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is concerned about the fate of American reporter Micah Garen, who disappeared, along with his Iraqi translator Amir Doshe, in Nassiriyah, southern Iraq, on 13 August 2004. The 36-year-old was filming a documentary on the country’s cultural history and the risk posed by the current conflict to archaeological sites. Garen’s fiancée, Marie-Hélène […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has strongly condemned the Iraqi authorities for ordering journalists to leave the holy Shiite city of Najaf on the eve of a major new United States (US) military offensive against anti-regime militants. The organisation called on the government to drop the ban at once. On 15 August 2004, police ordered all journalists […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – The following is a CPJ press release: Iraq: British journalist abducted in Basra, later released New York, August 13, 2004 – The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemns the abduction of a British freelance journalist in the southern Iraqi city of Basra. The journalist, James Brandon, was released on Friday, according to international […]

(IFJ/IFEX) – The following is an IFJ media release: IFJ Calls for Release of Kidnapped Journalist As New Media Safety Crisis Unfolds In Iraq The International Federation of Journalists today called for the immediate release of James Brandon, a British newspaper reporter who was shot and then snatched from his hotel by gunmen in the […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has expressed concern about the arrest of Mostafa Darban, the Iranian news agency IRNA’s Baghdad bureau chief, and three of his journalists by Iraqi police on 9 August 2004. All four are being held at the Interior Ministry. “We deplore these arrests and are especially concerned because the police have not given […]

(IFJ/IFEX) – The following is an IFJ media release: IFJ Accuses Iraq of “Unacceptable and Illogical Censorship” Over Ban on Al-Jazeera The International Federation of Journalists has criticised the interim government of Iraq over a month-long ban on the Arab satellite channel Al-Jazeera, which it says is an act of “unacceptable and illogical censorship that […]

(Freedom House/IFEX) – The following is a 4 August 2004 Freedom House press release: VIOLENCE MAIN OBSTACLE TO FREE MEDIA IN IRAQ NEW YORK, AUGUST 4, 2004 — While independent media in Iraq have enjoyed unprecedented growth since Saddam Hussein’s downfall, ongoing violence and a largely unregulated media environment are blocking the path toward greater […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – The following is a 29 July 2004 CPJ press release: CPJ SAYS NEW MEDIA COMMISSION TROUBLING, CALLS ON PRIME MINISTER TO CLARIFY New York, July 29, 2004 – The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply troubled by the Iraqi interim government’s formation of a media regulatory commission that reportedly has the authority […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has hailed the “remarkable work” of the British military police in locating the partial remains of Hussein Osman, a Lebanese interpreter working for the British television news station ITN who went missing in Iraq on 22 March 2003. The organisation regretted, however, that after a year of investigations British authorities are still […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has called on the authorities in northern Iraq to find and punish those responsible for a 3 June 2004 grenade attack that killed Sahar Saad Eddin Nuami, editor-in-chief of three Kirkuk weekly papers. Nuami was editor-in-chief of “Al-Mizan”, “Al-Khaima” and “Al-Hayat al-Gadida” and was close to a moderate pan-Arab political group. He […]

(IFJ/IFEX) – The following is a 1 June 2004 IFJ media release: IFJ Condemns US “Shocking Neglect” And Failure to Protect Journalists After New Media Killings in Iraq The International Federation of Journalists today condemned an escalation of the violence against media in Iraq following the killing of two media staff and the attempted kidnapping […]

(RSF/IFEX) – On 29 May 2004, Ismail Zair, editor-in-chief of the independent daily “Al-Sabah al-Jadid”, was the target of an attempted kidnapping. His driver and bodyguard were kidnapped and later killed. Zair was formerly editor-in-chief of the daily “Al-Sabah”. RSF called for a thorough and speedy inquiry into the incident and demanded that Zair be […]