New York, August 17, 2003—Mazen Dana, a veteran television cameraman for Reuters, was killed in Baghdad on Sunday while filming outside the city’s Abu Ghraib prison. According to wire service reports, Dana was shot by U.S.soldiers riding on a tank in the Iraqi capital.
The 43-year-old Palestinian was honored by CPJ two years ago for his years of courageous reporting on the conflict in his hometown of Hebron in the West Bank.
“In the midst of frequent violence, and often under attack himself, Mazen was a calm but determined witness who took constant risks in order to tell the world the news from the West Bank—and, more recently, from Iraq,” said CPJ executive director Ann Cooper.
The Committee to Protect Journalists calls for a full investigation into the shooting, and a public accounting of the circumstances.
“He was a great and well respected friend,” said Cooper. “Our deepest sympathies go to his wife, Suzana, his four children, and his many colleagues at Reuters and in the West Bank.”
