Journalists in Danger

The International Federation of Journalists has called for an independent and open inquiry into the killing yesterday afternoon of a Palestinian cameraman in Iraq by US troops, only days after the Federation accused the Pentagon of a “cynical whitewash” over a previous attack on media in which two journalists were killed. The shooting of Mazen Dana, an award-winning journalist working for the Reuters news agency, is “more tragic evidence of what appears to be casual disregard of journalists’ safety by military commanders,” said IFJ’s Aidan White.

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. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls for a full investigation into the shooting, and a public accounting of the circumstances.

In a report issued today on the Israeli army’s enquiries into the fatal shootings of two journalists in the Occupied Territories in April and May, Reporters Without Borders accuses the military of acting with a flagrant lack of rigour and determination and calls for proper investigations that could lead to the prosecution and punishment of those responsible.

Reporters Without Borders today voiced its shock at the death of British freelance cameraman James Miller, killed by Israeli army gunfire yesterday evening in Rafah in the Gaza Strip, and it called on the Israeli authorities to ensure that his death does not go unpunished.

Journalists have been subjected to various kinds of attacks in what appear to be attempts by Israel to prevent media coverage of human rights violation perpetrated by the Israeli forces against Palestinian civilians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. PCHR published its 9th report in a series of reports “Silencing the Press,” which document attacks against local and international journalists and media institutions in the OPT during the current Intifada.

The International Federation of Journalists today warned Israel that its boycott of the BBC announced this week challenges free speech and sends out a dangerous message in a region where press freedom is under pressure.

IPI published its third update on violations of press freedom in Israel and the OPT since 2000. While the casualties toll continued to rise, the percentages stayed roughly the same. Israelis were responsible for 82.9 percent of the 310 press freedom violations recorded by IPI from 28 September 2000 to 20 May 2003, Palestinians for 12.5 per cent. Ten journalists have been killed in the uprising and there have been a further 116 incidents in which journalists were injured by gunfire or shelling. During the conflict, journalists have been subject to targeted shootings, beatings, harassment, censorship, threats and obstruction in carrying out their profession. In addition, media outlets have been targeted and destroyed and broadcasting equipment seized and confiscated.