APRIL 2005
Posted: June 29, 2005
Ahmed al-Rubai’i, Al-Sabah
KILLED—CONFIRMED
Al-Rubai’i, a reporter and editor at the U.S.-backed daily Al-Sabah who also worked in the media department of the Iraqi National Assembly, was abducted and apparently murdered by unknown perpetrators in Baghdad mid-April. The circumstances of his abduction and apparent murder are not clear. No body was found.
Iraqi officials told the journalist’s family that al-Rubai’i had been murdered, colleagues said. The Washington Post reported on June 6 report that “police arrested several members of a criminal gang who admitted to killing several people. Rubai’i’s press pass was found among the identity cards in their possession.” The Post said the detainees told Iraqi police that al-Rubai’i had been beheaded, although his body was not recovered. CPJ could not verify this account.
The Iraqi National Guard and Interior Ministry told Al-Sabah staffers that the perpetrators belonged to the militant group Tawhid and Jihad, and they killed al-Rubai’i because he was a “traitor.”
Al-Rubai’i worked as a reporter for Al-Sabah. He took a second job as a media officer for the National Assembly five months before his death, staff said.