AUGUST 28, 2005
Posted: August 29, 2005
Waleed Khaled, Reuters
KILLED—CONFIRMED
Khaled, 35, a soundman for Reuters, was shot by U.S. forces several times in the face and chest as he drove with cameraman Haidar Kadhem to investigate a report of clashes between armed men and police in Baghdad’s Hay al-Adil district, Reuters reported.
Reuters quoted an Iraqi police report as saying: “A team from Reuters news agency was on assignment to cover the killing of two policemen in Hay al-Adil; U.S. forces opened fire on the team from Reuters and killed Waleed Khaled, who was shot in the head, and wounded Haider Kadhem.”
Kadhem, the only known eyewitness, was wounded in the back and was held by U.S. forces at undisclosed location in the aftermath. Before Kadhem was detained, he told reporters at the scene that he heard gunfire and saw a U.S. sniper on the roof a nearby shopping center.
Lt. Col. Steve Boylan, a U.S. military spokesman in Iraqi, told CPJ that there was “an open investigation into the events,” and couldn’t comment further. He said Kadhem had been detained “due to inconsistencies in his story” that “warrant further questioning.”