December 11, 2006
Posted: December 13, 2006
Omar Mohammad, Al-Hurra
ATTACKED
Unidentified gunmen shot and wounded Omar Mohammad, a correspondent for the U.S.-funded Arabic television station Al-Hurra, in Baghdad’s central Bab al-Sharqi area.
Around 3:30 p.m., an Al-Hurra car dropped Mohammad off at a pharmacy near his home, he told CPJ. As he left the pharmacy, three gunmen drove towards him in a car. One got out to direct traffic away from them, while another shot Mohammad with an AK-47 rifle, injuring him in his upper left thigh. The attackers fled. Mohammad was rushed to a nearby clinic and required 17 stitches in his leg. The incident took place approximately 10 meters (11 yards) from a police station.
Mohammad has received multiple death threats with insurgents accusing him of being an agent of the West and supporter of the U.S. occupation of Iraq, he said. He also survived an attempt on his life. On October 22, 2004, insurgents threw a hand grenade at his home in Baghdad’s al-Shaab neighborhood, damaging his house and car, though no one was injured, CNN reported. Police said they believe the house was struck because Mohammad works for Al-Hurra, the news organization said.
Mohammad told CPJ that he has moved house six times in three years that he has worked at Al-Hurra.