Hashim, 21, a correspondent for the opposition website Al Etihad Press, was killed in government bombardment of the town of Arbin in the Damascus countryside, according to his organization, media reports, and the Samir Kassir Foundation. Hashim was photographing the impact of an air raid on Arbin when he was hit in a second wave of airstrikes. A graphic YouTube video posted by Al Etihad Press on March 11, 2015, claims to show the attack taking place.
Hashim, who used the name “Noureddine Khatib” professionally, had worked for Al Etihad Press since January 2014 and mostly shot videos and took photographs, often in Arbin, a neighborhood he knew well, his editor, Osama al-Madi, told CPJ. Al Etihad Press has operated since 2012 and reports on the Syrian war through video footage, news articles, and photographs.
According to al-Madi, Hashim frequently reported on the impact of the war on daily life in Eastern Ghouta, a sprawling area east of the capital that is under siege by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces. He also documented the aftermath of shelling in Jobar, a district neighboring Arbin.
The March 8 airstrikes in Arbin killed at least 10 other civilians, according to activists and news reports. In the days leading up to Hashim’s death, aerial bombardment of the town was frequent and often deadly, while clashes between rival rebel groups were increasingly common.
Al Etihad Press released a six-minute YouTube video commemorating Hashim’s life and work and featuring his colleagues praising his brave reporting despite his youth. One editor recounted a time in the video when Hashim was asked if he was afraid of working in dangerous areas. Hashim responded: “My camera is my weapon against the regime.”
EDITOR’S NOTE: The text has been modified to reflect that the bombardment of Arbin that killed Hashim was from the air, not shelling.