Iraq / Middle East & North Africa

  

Iraq shuts Al-Baghdadia after bloody church attack

New York, November 2, 2010–The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the Iraqi authorities’ decision to close down Al-Baghdadia TV offices in Iraq. The closure of the Cairo-based satellite channel was announced after it broadcast the demands of gunmen who attacked a church in Baghdad on Sunday. Fifty-eight people were killed during the siege, according to…

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Freelance cameraman slain in Iraq

New York, October 4, 2010–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the killing earlier today of freelance cameraman Tahrir Kadhim Jawad, 27, and expressed concern over the rising trend of fatal attacks on journalists in Iraq.

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Investigation of Kurdish journalist’s murder lacks credibility

New York, September 15, 2010–The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) today released the result of a five-month-long investigation into the death of Sardasht Osman, a freelance journalist who was shot to death in May. The Committee to Protect Journalists is dismayed by the deficient inquiry and calls on Kurdish authorities to conduct a thorough and credible…

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Murder, ‘suicide,’ crossfire: A week of journalist killings

Today we will report another murder of a journalist. This one was in Argentina. The last one we documented was a couple days ago–Alberto Graves Chakussanga was shot in the back in Angola. These tragedies are part of our daily work at CPJ, but this week was different. There have been eight killings of journalists…

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Second TV anchor gunned down in two days in Iraq

New York, September 8, 2010–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Iraqi authorities to thoroughly investigate the murder of Safa al-Din Abdel Hamid, an Al-Mosuliya television presenter who was shot this morning in front of his Mosul home by gunmen firing from a speeding car, according to news accounts.

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A clip of Riad al-Saray, an Al-Iraqiya anchor murdered in Baghdad. (AFP/Sabah Arar)

Al-Iraqiya anchorman gunned down in Iraq

New York, September 7, 2010–Riad al-Saray, an anchorman for Al-Iraqiya television, was killed this morning when a group of unidentified gunmen opened fire on his car in western Baghdad, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists called on Iraqi authorities to thoroughly investigate the murder and bring the perpetrators to justice.

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KDP paper publishes threat against journalists

New York, August 10, 2010–The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by death threats made against journalists at the Sulaymaniyah-based Livin after the magazine published an interview that was critical of a 20th-century Kurdish leader.

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Barzani's KDP wants a to shut a newspaper that raised questions about its activities. (AP/Thierry Charlier)

Barzani’s KDP targets paper that alleged oil smuggling

New York, August 5, 2010—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) led by Masoud Barzani, president of the Kurdish Regional Government, to drop a defamation complaint against an opposition weekly, Rozhnama. The complaint, filed under Saddam Hussein-era criminal statutes, seeks US$1 billion in damages and the closing of the newspaper.

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Iraqi soldiers outside Al-Arabiya's office in central Baghdad after a suicide bombing today. (Ali Al-Saadi/AFP)

Al-Qaeda claims responsibility for Al-Arabiya bombing

New York, July 26, 2010–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns a suicide attack on Al-Arabiya’s  bureau in Baghdad. The attack killed three of the satellite news channel’s support staff, according to Tareq Maher, an Al-Arabiya journalist who was inside the building during the blast.

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Two bills that would support the media have stalled in the Iraqi parliament, seen here on June 14, during its first session with new members. (AP/Hadi Mizban)

Iraq plans to establish special court for journalists

New York, July 20, 2010—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Court to disclose details about the decision to establish a new press court and to explain the mechanisms under which it will operate.

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