DEMOCRACY!

26 Oct 2007

IRAQ: Mental problems and stress disorders increase

BAGHDAD, 25 October 2007 (IRIN) - Salah Hashimy, 14, has lost his parents, sisters and many friends since the US-led invasion in 2003; finally there was no one to look after him. He lacks education, love and support, a combination that, according to doctors, caused his mental health problems.

“My memory is very weak but I cannot forget when I saw my sister being raped by militants until she died,” Hashimy said.

Hashimy, who is being treated at Ibn-Rushd psychiatric hospital in Baghdad, has at last found a place to stay at Keeping Children Alive (KCA), a local NGO that takes care of children with mental disorders. However, after recent threats against the NGO, Salah might have to find another place to live if it is forced to close.

“Salah is just one example of dozens of children and adults who come to our unit in this hospital and all of them have developed mental disorders after the war,” said Shalan Aboudy, director of Ibn-Rushd psychiatric hospital.

“All patients have similar histories. Some have lost relatives, children became orphans, women were raped, men lost their fiancés a couple of days before marriage,” Aboudy added.

100 patients a day

According to Aboudy, about 100 patients a day visit the hospital since it is the only one with a psychiatric unit in the capital although it lacks supplies and medical staff. Long queues form daily outside its door. “The majority are women, fewer men and plenty of children,” Aboudy noted.

In 2006, the hospital was supported by 14 specialists but now there are four as most have fled the country.

“I come here at least once a week to find a solution for my daughter, who lost her fiancé in an explosion. She has since become hysterical. It has been longer than one year but she continues behaving hysterically,” said Muhammad Sa’ad, 53, father of three.

The KCA said it has seen dozens of cases of children suffering from mental disorders caused by the impact of the war.

“We have two psychologists in our main branch in Hadithiyah district assisting children in Baghdad but most of the cases are useless as parents don’t return after the clinical diagnosis, as they do not accept that their children could be suffering from mental disorders caused by the war,” Mayada Marouf, a spokesman for the KCA, said. “They take their children back home and never show up again, losing the opportunity to have them assisted by specialists.

“Traditional families still believe that it is shameful to suffer from mental disorders and prefer to confine their children to their homes like useless persons,” Marouf added.

KCA has registered about 1,800 children and 1,100 women who have sought psychological help since January 2007 but fewer than 6 percent have returned to continue the treatment after the first doctor’s evaluation.

Fariz Mahmoud, a professor of neurology at Baghdad University, said the main reason for the increase in psychological disorders and distress among the population is fear.

“People are scared of violence. They cannot [bear to] hear bullets, explosions and the news of a lost relative. Children cannot stand the idea of staying at home or living as displaced and more cases will be reported in the coming months,” Mahmoud said. “Fear is like a cancer in some situations, it takes control over the body, reaching a stage when neither the doctor nor the medicines are able to reverse the results.”

Before May 2007, Baghdad reportedly had at least six NGOs offering psychological help to people suffering from mental disorders but after continuous threats from insurgents they closed down.

as/ar/mw
ارتفاع حالات الإصابة بالاضطرابات النفسية
بغداد، 25/اكتوبر/2007
قد صلاح هاشمي، 14 عاماً، والديه وأخواته والعديد من أصدقائه منذ بداية الغزو الذي تقوده الولايات المتحدة على العراق منذ عام 2003. ولم يبق لديه من يرعاه، كما أن فقدانه للتعليم والحب والدعم سبب له، حسب الأطباء، مشاكل نفسية كبيرة.
ويقول صلاح: "ذاكرتي ضعيفة جداً ولكنني أعجز عن نسيان منظر أختي وهي تتعرض للاغتصاب على يد المقاتلين حتى لفظت أنفاسها الأخيرة".
وبعد طول معاناة وجد صلاح، الذي يتلقى علاجه في مستشفى ابن رشد للأمراض النفسية ببغداد، مكاناً يأوي إليه لدى منظمة الحفاظ على حياة الأطفال، وهي منظمة غير حكومية تهتم بالأطفال الذين يعانون من مشاكل نفسية. غير أنه قد يضطر للبحث عن مكان آخر يأوي إليه إذا ما أقفلت هذه المنظمة أبوابها بسبب التهديدات الأمنية التي تلقتها مؤخراً.
وعن حالة صلاح، قال شعلان عبودي، مدير مستشفى ابن رشد للأمراض النفسية: "إن حالة صلاح ليست سوى مثالاً على حال عشرات الأطفال والبالغين الذين يأتون إلى وحدتنا بالمستشفى وهم يعانون من اضطرابات نفسية بسبب الحرب. كل المرضى يتشابهون من حيث التاريخ، فبعضهم فقد أقاربه، وبعض الأطفال أصبحوا أيتاماً وبعض النساء تعرضن للاغتصاب، وبعض الرجال فقدوا خطيباتهم أياماً قليلة قبل الزواج".
مائة مريض في اليوم الواحد
ووفقاً لعبودي، يزور المستشفى حوالي 100 مريض في اليوم الواحد لأنه المستشفى الوحيد في العاصمة الذي يشمل وحدة للأمراض النفسية بالرغم من أنه يفتقر للمعدات والكوادر. كما أشار إلى أن صفوفاً طويلة من الناس تقف يومياً أمام أبواب المستشفى، معظمهم من النساء والأطفال.
وكان المستشفى يضم 14 أخصائياً في عام 2006 ، أما الآن فلم يتبق منهم سوى أربعة بعد أن غادر الآخرون البلاد.
أما محمد سعد، الذي يبلغ من العمر 53 عاماً وأب لثلاثة أطفال، فيقول: "آتي إلى هنا مرة في الأسبوع على الأقل علني أجد حلاً لابنتي التي فقدت خطيبها في حادث انفجار. منذ ذلك الحين، وهي تعاني من نوبات هستيرية. لقد مضى عام على الحادث ولا زالت تتصرف بهستيرية".
كما أفادت منظمة الحفاظ على حياة الأطفال بأنها رأت العشرات من الأطفال الذين يعانون من اضطرابات عقلية بسبب الحرب. وقالت ميادة معروف، الناطقة باسم المنظمة: "لدينا طبيبان نفسيان في فرعنا الرئيسي بالحديثية لمساعدة الأطفال في بغداد ولكن معظم الحالات لا يرجى منها فائدة لأن الآباء لا يعودون بعد الحصول على التشخيص السريري، فهم لا يتقبلون أن يكون أبناؤهم يعانون من أمراض نفسية بسبب الحرب. كل ما يفعلونه هو أنهم يصحبون أطفالهم إلى البيت ثم لا يعودون إلى هنا أبداً، فتضيع منهم فرصة الاستفادة من خدمات الأخصائي. فالعائلات التقليدية لا تزال تعتقد بأن الاضطرابات النفسية شيء مهين، ولذلك فهي تفضل أن تحتجز أطفالها في البيت".
وسجلت منظمة الحفاظ على حياة الأطفال حوالي 1,800 طفل و1,100 امرأة تقدموا للحصول على المساعدة النفسية منذ يناير/كانون الثاني 2007، إلا أن أقل من 6 بالمائة منهم فقط عادوا لمتابعة العلاج بعد الحصول على تشخيص الطبيب.
ويرى فريد محمود، أستاذ علم الأعصاب بجامعة بغداد، بأن السبب الرئيس في ارتفاع حالات الإصابة بالاضطرابات النفسية بين السكان هو الخوف. "فالناس خائفون من العنف. لا يستطيعون تحمل سماع صوت القنابل والانفجارات وأخبار فقدان الأقارب. كما أن الأطفال لا يستطيعون تحمل فكرة البقاء لوحدهم في البيت أو العيش في مخيمات النازحين".
وأضاف قائلاً: "أتوقع أن يتم الإبلاغ عن العديد من الحالات الأخرى في المستقبل القريب... إن الخوف شبيه بالسرطان في بعض الحالات، فهو يتملك الجسم ويسيطر عليه ليصل إلى مرحلة لا يستطيع فيها الأطباء ولا الدواء عكس النتائج المترتبة عليه".
وكانت بغداد قبل شهر مايو/أيار 2007، تضم أكثر من 6 منظمات غير حكومية توفر الدعم النفسي للأشخاص الذين يعانون من اضطرابات
نفسية إلا أنها اضطرت إلى إقفال أبوابها بعد التعرض للعديد من التهديدات من المتمردين
".

22 Oct 2007

Riverbend in Syria: Bloggers Without Borders...

By Riverbend
Syria is a beautiful country- at least I think it is. I say “I think” because while I perceive it to be beautiful, I sometimes wonder if I mistake safety, security and normalcy for ‘beauty’. In so many ways, Damascus is like Baghdad before the war- bustling streets, occasional traffic jams, markets seemingly always full of shoppers… And in so many ways it’s different. The buildings are higher, the streets are generally narrower and there’s a mountain, Qasiyoun, that looms in the distance.
The mountain distracts me, as it does many Iraqis- especially those from Baghdad. Northern Iraq is full of mountains, but the rest of Iraq is quite flat. At night, Qasiyoun blends into the black sky and the only indication of its presence is a multitude of little, glimmering spots of light- houses and restaurants built right up there on the mountain. Every time I take a picture, I try to work Qasiyoun into it- I try to position the person so that Qasiyoun is in the background.
The first weeks here were something of a cultural shock. It has taken me these last three months to work away certain habits I’d acquired in Iraq after the war. It’s funny how you learn to act a certain way and don’t even know you’re doing strange things- like avoiding people’s eyes in the street or crazily murmuring prayers to yourself when stuck in traffic. It took me at least three weeks to teach myself to walk properly again- with head lifted, not constantly looking behind me.
It is estimated that there are at least 1.5 million Iraqis in Syria today. I believe it. Walking down the streets of Damascus, you can hear the Iraqi accent everywhere. There are areas like Geramana and Qudsiya that are packed full of Iraqi refugees. Syrians are few and far between in these areas. Even the public schools in the areas are full of Iraqi children. A cousin of mine is now attending a school in Qudsiya and his class is composed of 26 Iraqi children, and 5 Syrian children. It’s beyond belief sometimes. Most of the families have nothing to live on beyond their savings which are quickly being depleted with rent and the costs of living.
Within a month of our being here, we began hearing talk about Syria requiring visas from Iraqis, like most other countries. Apparently, our esteemed puppets in power met with Syrian and Jordanian authorities and decided they wanted to take away the last two safe havens remaining for Iraqis- Damascus and Amman. The talk began in late August and was only talk until recently- early October. Iraqis entering Syria now need a visa from the Syrian consulate or embassy in the country they are currently in. In the case of Iraqis still in Iraq, it is said that an approval from the Ministry of Interior is also required (which kind of makes it difficult for people running away from militias OF the Ministry of Interior…). Today, there’s talk of a possible fifty dollar visa at the border.
Iraqis who entered Syria before the visa was implemented were getting a one month visitation visa at the border. As soon as that month was over, you could take your passport and visit the local immigration bureau. If you were lucky, they would give you an additional month or two. When talk about visas from the Syrian embassy began, they stopped giving an extension on the initial border visa. We, as a family, had a brilliant idea. Before the commotion of visas began, and before we started needing a renewal, we decided to go to one of the border crossings, cross into Iraq, and come back into Syria- everyone was doing it. It would buy us some time- at least 2 months.We chose a hot day in early September and drove the six hours to Kameshli, a border town in northern Syria. My aunt and her son came with us- they also needed an extension on their visa. There is a border crossing in Kameshli called Yaarubiya. It’s one of the simpler crossings because the Iraqi and Syrian borders are only a matter of several meters. You walk out of Syrian territory and then walk into Iraqi territory- simple and safe.When we got to the Yaarubiya border patrol, it hit us that thousands of Iraqis had had our brilliant idea simultaneously- the lines to the border patrol office were endless. Hundreds of Iraqis stood in a long line waiting to have their passports stamped with an exit visa. We joined the line of people and waited. And waited. And waited…It took four hours to leave the Syrian border after which came the lines of the Iraqi border post. Those were even longer. We joined one of the lines of weary, impatient Iraqis. “It’s looking like a gasoline line…” My younger cousin joked. That was the beginning of another four hours of waiting under the sun, taking baby steps, moving forward ever so slowly. The line kept getting longer. At one point, we could see neither the beginning of the line, where passports were being stamped to enter Iraq, nor the end. Running up and down the line were little boys selling glasses of water, chewing gum and cigarettes. My aunt caught one of them by the arm as he zipped past us, “How many people are in front of us?” He whistled and took a few steps back to assess the situation, “A hundred! A thousand!”. He was almost gleeful as he ran off to make business.I had such mixed feelings standing in that line. I was caught between a feeling of yearning, a certain homesickness that sometimes catches me at the oddest moments, and a heavy feeling of dread. What if they didn’t agree to let us out again? It wasn’t really possible, but what if it happened? What if this was the last time I’d see the Iraqi border? What if we were no longer allowed to enter Iraq for some reason? What if we were never allowed to leave?We spent the four hours standing, crouching, sitting and leaning in the line. The sun beat down on everyone equally- Sunnis, Shia and Kurds alike. E. tried to convince the aunt to faint so it would speed the process up for the family, but she just gave us a withering look and stood straighter. People just stood there, chatting, cursing or silent. It was yet another gathering of Iraqis – the perfect opportunity to swap sad stories and ask about distant relations or acquaintances.
We met two families we knew while waiting for our turn. We greeted each other like long lost friends and exchanged phone numbers and addresses in Damascus, promising to visit. I noticed the 23-year-old son, K., from one of the families was missing. I beat down my curiosity and refused to ask where he was. The mother was looking older than I remembered and the father looked constantly lost in thought, or maybe it was grief. I didn’t want to know if K. was dead or alive. I’d just have to believe he was alive and thriving somewhere, not worrying about borders or visas. Ignorance really is bliss sometimes...Back at the Syrian border, we waited in a large group, tired and hungry, having handed over our passports for a stamp. The Syrian immigration man sifting through dozens of passports called out names and looked at faces as he handed over the passports patiently, “Stand back please- stand back”. There was a general cry towards the back of the crowded hall where we were standing as someone collapsed- as they lifted him I recognized an old man who was there with his family being chaperoned by his sons, leaning on a walking stick.By the time we had reentered the Syrian border and were headed back to the cab ready to take us into Kameshli, I had resigned myself to the fact that we were refugees. I read about refugees on the Internet daily… in the newspapers… hear about them on TV. I hear about the estimated 1.5 million plus Iraqi refugees in Syria and shake my head, never really considering myself or my family as one of them. After all, refugees are people who sleep in tents and have no potable water or plumbing, right? Refugees carry their belongings in bags instead of suitcases and they don’t have cell phones or Internet access, right? Grasping my passport in my hand like my life depended on it, with two extra months in Syria stamped inside, it hit me how wrong I was. We were all refugees. I was suddenly a number. No matter how wealthy or educated or comfortable, a refugee is a refugee. A refugee is someone who isn’t really welcome in any country- including their own... especially their own.We live in an apartment building where two other Iraqis are renting. The people in the floor above us are a Christian family from northern Iraq who got chased out of their village by Peshmerga and the family on our floor is a Kurdish family who lost their home in Baghdad to militias and were waiting for immigration to Sweden or Switzerland or some such European refugee haven.The first evening we arrived, exhausted, dragging suitcases behind us, morale a little bit bruised, the Kurdish family sent over their representative – a 9 year old boy missing two front teeth, holding a lopsided cake, “We’re Abu Mohammed’s house- across from you- mama says if you need anything, just ask- this is our number. Abu Dalia’s family live upstairs, this is their number. We’re all Iraqi too... Welcome to the building.”I cried that night because for the first time in a long time, so far away from home, I felt the unity that had been stolen from us in 2003.

21 Oct 2007

اصابة ثلاثة عراقيين بينهم صحافية كردية بنيران شركة حماية اجنبية قرب كركوك

كركوك (العراق) ـ اف ب: 19-10-2007
اعلنت الشرطة العراقية امس اصابة ثلاثة اشخاص بينهم صحافية كردية تعمل لصالح فضائية زاكروس بجروح اثر اطلاق نار من قبل عناصر حماية شركة اجنبية امنية شمال مدينة كركوك (255 كلم شمال بغداد)
وقال العميد تورهان يوسف قائد شرطة محافظة كركوك ان موكبا تابعا لشركة امنية اجنبية اطلق النار على سيارة اجرة تقل خمسة مدنيين بالقرب من قري انجيل (40 كلم شمال كركوك) ما اسفر عن اصابة ثلاثة اشخاص بينهم صحافية كردية تعمل لصالح فضائية زاكروس0
واوضح ان المصابين نقلوا الى المستشفي لتلقي العلاج ، مشيرا الى ان تحقيقات مشتركة مع القوات الامريكية جارية لمعرفة الشركة المتورطة بالقضية 0

by Marwan Ibrahim Thu Oct 18, 2:13 PM ET
KIRKUK, Iraq (AFP) - Guards from a British security firm fired on a taxi in Iraq on Thursday wounding three civilians, police said, in a shooting that will put new pressure on the government to rein in private contractors.

10 Oct 2007

Outraged Iraqis condemn killings by foreign guards


BAGHDAD (AFP) - by Salam Faraj

Outraged Iraqi authorities on Wednesday condemned the killing in Baghdad of two women by foreign security guards but the Australian-run firm which hired the contractors defended their actions.


The daughters (L, 2nd L and 2nd R) of Iraqi Armenian Christian woman Maroni Awanis, who was killed by foreign security guards, mourn during the funeral procession in Baghdad. Outraged Iraqi authorities have condemned the killing in Baghdad of two women by foreign security guards but the Australian-run firm which hired the contractors defended their actions.(AFP/Ali Yussef)
Tuesday's shooting comes just days after Iraq vowed to punish US security firm Blackwater after a probe found that its guards opened "deliberate" fire in Baghdad three weeks ago, killing 17 civilians.
"The government and the prime minister and everybody categorically condemns the actions of this company," the head of the Baghdad security plan, General Qassim Mussawi said in a statement.
"Our weapon is the law for this company and we will try to study this issue calmly."
Witnesses to Tuesday's shooting in the Karrada neighbourhood said a woman taxi driver mistakenly got too close to the firm's convoy and came under immediate gunfire by the guards, who work for Dubai-based Unity Resources Group (URG).
The taxi driver, an Armenian Christian woman identifed as Maroni Ohannes, 49, and a female passenger died of gunshots to the head. Another woman passenger was wounded in the shoulder, while a child was injured by flying glass.
Several witnesses reported barrages of gunfire while a policeman who witnessed the shooting said that after blazing away at the car the foreign security guards sped off "like gangsters."
"The first information that we have is that our security team was approached at speed by a vehicle which failed to stop despite an escalation of warnings which included hand signals and a signal flare," Unity said in a statement.
"Finally shots were fired at the vehicle and it stopped. Unity is now working with the Iraqi authorities to determine the outcome of this incident."
"We deeply regret this incident," the company said.


A small group of grieving relatives of the two dead women, both Christians, gathered for their funerals at the Armenian Church in central Baghdad on Wednesday.
"The incident is a barbarous crime," said one sobbing relative, Kasbar Boghos. "Those guards are inhuman. They have no pity nor do they have any religion."
Another, Kevork Armelian, judged the shootings a "crime against humanity."
"We call on the Iraqi government to put an end to this," Armelian told AFP. "It was clear that women were inside the car when they opened fire haphazardly and deliberately.
"We demand the expulsion of the company so that others can learn a lesson. The Australian government when sending envoys should teach them human rights -- not how to kill innocent people."
A spokesman for RTI International, a non-profit organisation which uses Unity as security escorts in Iraq, said the vehicles were returning to base after dropping off its staff.
"No RTI staff members were involved or present when the incident occurred. Unity was not transporting RTI personnel at the time. They had completed a transportation mission and were returning to their base of operations," Patrick Gibbons, the group's communications director, told AFP.
RTI is involved in training Iraqis in local government management and administration.
A US embassy spokeswoman in Baghdad told AFP that Unity was employed by a non-profit organisation under contract to the US government agency USAID.
"USAID does not direct the security arrangements of contractors. Contractors are contractually responsible for the safety and well being of their employees," spokeswoman Mirembe Nantongo told AFP, adding that the State Department was in contact with the Iraqi authorities about the incident.
Iraq's government said on Monday that it was determined to rein in private security contractors operating in the war-torn country following the Blackwater shooting on September 16, which an Iraqi report said was unprovoked.
"We have set strict mechanisms to control the behaviour of the security companies and their conduct in the streets," interior ministry spokesman Abdul Karim Khalaf said.
الملف – دبي
أعلنت شركة
Unity Resources Group للخدمات الأمنية واللوجستية في بيان لها من مقرها الرئيس في دبي مسؤولية
عناصرها عن مقتل امرأتين في منطقة المسبح وسط بغداد.1وقال بيان الشركة إن عناصرها أطلقوا النار على سيارة كانت متجهة نحو موكبهم بسرعة، وأخفقت في التوقف رغم كل الإشارات عن طريق اليد أو القنابل الدخانية، مما اضطرهم لإطلاق النار.1وقد أسفر إطلاق النار عن مقتل مارو أوانيس البالغة من العمر 48 عاما والأم لثلاثة بنات، وجنيفا جلال البالغة من العمر 30 عاما. 1وقد قتلت السيدتان بعد ظهر الثلاثاء في منطقة المسبح بنيران عناصر الشركة الذين كانوا ضمن موكب من أربع سيارات رباعية الدفع قاموا بإطلاق قنبلة دخانية تحذيرية على بعد 80 مترا من سيارة الضحيتين، مما أدى إلى إصابة السائقة بالذعر وعدم تمكنها من إيقاف سيارتها إلى جانب الرصيف.1وقال شرطي رفض الكشف عن إسمه لوكالة أسوشيتدبرس إن الحراس كانوا مقنعين ويرتدون ملابس رسمية باللون الخاكي، وإن أحدهم غادر مركبته وبدأ بإطلاق الرصاص على السيارة، فيما فتح رفيقه النار من سيارة أخرى ضمن الموكب الذي ضم أربع سيارات. 1وقال القس الذي حضر إلى مركز شرطة المسبح برفقة أقارب الضحيتين اللتين تنتميان إلى الطائفة المسيحية الأرمنية في العراق، إن مارو أوانيس كانت تستخدم سيارتها لتوصيل موظفات حكوميات إلى مقار أعمالهن يوميا، لإعالة بناتها الثلاث. 1فيما صرخت أخت زوجها أناهيد بوغوص قائلة "أتمنى أن ينتقم الله من هؤلاء القتلة، من سيربي هؤلاء البنات بعد وفاة والدتهن". 1من جانبها، قالت الحكومة العراقية على لسان الناطق الرسمي باسمها علي الدباغ إن تحقيقا يجري لمعرفة ملابسات مقتل عراقيتين على يد عناصر إحدى الشركات الأمنية الخاصة. 1بدورها، قالت ميريمبي نانتونغو الناطقة باسم السفارة الأميركية في بغداد إن السفارة لا علاقة لها بالموكب الأمني الذي أطلق النار على النساء.

5 Oct 2007

The betrayal of Iraq’s media professionals

The betrayal of Iraq’s media professionals



(Dirk Adriaensens, member BRussells Tribunal executive Committee, 29 September 2007)

A new landmark in the Iraq catastrophe, and a new landmark in history altogether:

at least 300 media professionals have died in Iraq.

Suhad Al-Khalidi, reporter for Iraqi Media Network, was killed by US troops on 4 February 2007 when their patrol passed by her car in Hilla. Three guards working for the government funded al-Iraqiya TV were killed by fire of foreign security guards in central Baghdad on 7 February 2007. Foreign security guards accompanying a delegation shot and killed the three guards. Rasoul Abdul Hussein, a reporter, was killed together with his wife in Diwaniya on 21 February 2007. Hamid Mohammed Salih, a program director for the Dijlah radio station, was assassinated in the Jami'a district 0n 19 March 2007. Mohammed Jassim Yousif, a reporter for the Iraqi Media Network, was assassinated west of Baghdad on 31 March. An unknown correspondent for the Egyptian daily Al-Ahram was killed in a car bomb explosion targeting the Shi’ite Khillani mosque in a crowded area of central Baghdad on 19 June 2007. Abdul Khaliq al-Habir al-Anbaki, a caricaturist in al-Mutamar newspaper, was killed along with his 11-member-family in the car bombing attack that took place on 27 July 2007 in Karrada, central Baghdad.

The two things these murders have in common is that these persons were Iraqi media professionals and that their assassination, which occurred in 2007, went unreported by CPJ (Committee to Protect Journalists), and RSF (Reporters Without Borders). These casualties are listed on the BRussells Tribunal website (http://www.brusselstribunal.org/JournalistKilled.htm) and their cases were taken from different press reports.

What’s happening with the Western journalist ethics? What’s happening with the solidarity between Western media professionals and their Iraqi colleagues? The above mentioned killings, did they not take place? Were they not mentioned in one or another press report? Why are they not listed then?

Different journalists organisations defend the interests of their colleagues and/or compile lists of killed media professionals in occupied Iraq: CPJ (Committee to Protect Journalists), RSF (Reporters Without Borders), INSI (International News Safety Institute) – closely linked with the IFJ (International Federation of Journalists), ICasualties (Iraq Coalition Casualty Count), (IFEX) International Freedom of Expression Exchange - who collect most of their data from RSF-, and others, like UNESCO.

CPJ considers a journalist to be killed on duty if the person died as a result of a hostile action—such as reprisal for his or her work, or crossfire while carrying out a dangerous assignment. CPJ does not include journalists killed in accidents, such as car or plane crashes, unless the crash was caused by aggressive human action (for example, if a plane were shot down or a car crashed trying to avoid gunfire). Nor does CPJ include journalists who died of health ailments. They list only 26 Media professionals killed in 2007, of which 5 in a list of pending investigations into suspicious deaths, called Killed: Motive Unconfirmed.

The Freedom Forum Journalists Memorial (Newseum) staffers claim to compile their list from information circulated by the Committee to Protect Journalists, the International Press Institute, the International Freedom of Expression Clearing House, Reporters Sans Frontières, the International Federation of Journalists, the Inter American Press Association, news stories and other sources. A whole lot of sources, it seems. They list only 28 journalists killed in Iraq in 2007.

Reporters without Borders lists only 50 killed media professionals in 2007. INSI lists 57 casualties in 2007.

The BRussells Tribunal lists 300 deceased media professionals since the illegal invasion until now, of which 271 are Iraqi Nationals. 6 died of “non-violent” causes. All the others are violent deaths. The number for 2007 stands at 72 killed media professionals, of which 71 are Iraqis. The latest casualty being an Iraqi newspaper correspondent who was fatally wounded in a rocket attack in Mosul on 28th September 2007.

All the mainstream media worldwide take over the ridiculous figures of CPJ and RSF. Here’s what one usually reads in an article about yet another killing of a media professional:
“According to Reporters Without Borders at least X journalists and media assistants have been killed in Iraq since the start of the war in March 2003; two are missing and 13 are currently being held hostage. Their number may be higher than the CPJ figure quoted above because it includes media assistants as well as journalists.”
“The CPJ count is the most widely cited number in reporting on journalist deaths in Iraq. But the CPJ tally of 61 is misunderstood and incomplete because it excludes dozens of journalists and news organization employees killed or who otherwise died on assignment in Iraq.”, Eason Jordan writes in the IHT on 08 February 2006.

The US Administration, the Brookings Institution, you name it, they all use CPJ, RSF and ICasualties figures of killed media professionals. One would expect that lists of murdered colleagues are compiled with the greatest care, given the importance official bodies attach to these figures. That is not the case. The negligence with which the lists are compiled is revolting. It is another sign of either self-censorship or deliberate downplaying of casualties, something we’re seeing happening with the surveys of civilian casualties in Iraq. The media don’t use the scientific studies of the Lancet or the credible polls of ORB, the media use the ridiculous figure of Iraq Bodycount, an organisation that lists only what the Western media reports. A clear case of inbreeding. A clear case of imitating “His Master’s Voice”.

Please have a look at some figures. These include Journalists, Media workers and unconfirmed cases.
SINCE 2003:
CPJ Committee to Protect Journalists Not reported: 132 violent deaths
RSF Reporters Without Borders Not reported: 92 violent deaths
INSI International News Safety Institute Not reported: 68 violent deaths
ICAS Iraq Coalition Casualty Count Not reported: 163 violent deaths
NEWSEUM Freedom Forum Journalists Memorial Not reported: 170 violent deaths


Al-Iraqiya director general Habib al-Sadr told AFP last month that at least 75 members of his staff have been killed since he took over the channel in 2005 and another 68 wounded. The BRussells Tribunal list of killed media professionals has less than 1/3rd of this number in its database. So by extrapolation we could conclude that we have listed only about 1/3rd of the real casualties of media professionals in the Iraq war. Why is this claim not being further investigated? Habib al-Sadr’s words are meant for sceptic people who think that the BRussells Tribunal figures have been artificially inflated.

Do I sound too harsh for the Western media organisations? I don’t think so. I’ve written to CPJ and received a meaningless answer. I wrote to RSF and received no answer. I’ve written to many media outlets and received no reaction. I’ve also sent them a previous article:

At least 78 media professionals killed in Iraq in 2006.”, dated 21 February 2007. No reactions, no comment.

By the way: after further research, I discovered that at least 90 media professionals have been killed in 2006, not 78. Here is the number of killed media professionals by year, according to different press accounts.

Iraq war deadliest conflict for media professionals. (List: 29 September 2007)
Year Iraqi media workers killed Non Iraqi Total

2003 6 19 25

2004 51 6 57

2005 55 1 56

2006 88 2 90

2007 71 1 72


Total: 271 29 300

Of which 6 have died of “non-violent” causes.

Let’s have a closer look at the figures for 2007. Let’s have a look – as an example - at the media professionals that CPJ doesn’t include in its list. Conclude for yourself if these deaths would have to be included or not. And think about why they have not been included. There is a link to the media that have reported these killings.

Khoudr Younes al-Obaidi Freelance journalist 12/01/2007
Armed men opened fire on Khoudr Younes al-Obaidi in the evening of 12 January as he returned to his home in Mosul, police said. The journalist, who was as a stringer for several titles, worked mostly for Al-Diwan, the press organ of local tribes. No motiv

Yassin Aid Assef Al Sabah’s correspondent 14/01/2007
killed by a bomb while out covering a story in Baghdad

Falah Khalaf Al Diyali journalist of the daily Al Saha 15/01/2007
shot dead by unidentified gunmen on 15 January in the city of Ramadi
Unknown

employee of the governmental daily Al Sabah 16/01/2007
Four employees of the governmental daily Al Sabah were killed in an especially horrifying manner from 12 to 16 January. Two, whose names have not been revealed, were kidnapped from the newspaper’s offices in Baghdad on 12 January and were found with their throats cut the next day near Al Nouman hospital.
Unknown


employee of the governmental daily Al Sabah 16/01/2007
Four employees of the governmental daily Al Sabah were killed in an especially horrifying manner from 12 to 16 January. Two, whose names have not been revealed, were kidnapped from the newspaper’s offices in Baghdad on 12 January and were found with their throats cut the next day near Al Nouman hospital.
Unknown

security guard Al Sabah 16/01/2007
A security guard’s body was found on the newspaper’s roof on 16 January. The newspaper, which did not want to give out his name, said he was probably shot from a distance with a hunting rifle while patrolling the building’s roof.

Salih Mehdi Mustaqbal radio station 17/01/2007
http://www.iraqslogger.com/index.php/post/2215/18_Iraqi_Journalists_Killed_in_2007

Mohammed Nuri Reporter Iraqi Media Network,

assassinated in the Ninewa governorate 20/01/2007
http://www.iraqslogger.com/index.php/post/2215/18_Iraqi_Journalists_Killed_in_2007

Baha' Hussein Khalaf
Reporter Iraqi Media Network, assassinated in the Ninewa governorate
20/01/2007
http://www.iraqslogger.com/index.php/post/2215/18_Iraqi_Journalists_Killed_in_2007

Dhiaa' Mugotar
editor in chief of the Protection of Consumers business magazine, is assassinated in Adhamiya
24/01/2007
http://www.iraqslogger.com/index.php/post/2215/18_Iraqi_Journalists_Killed_in_2007

Munjid Al-Tumaimi Freelance photographer 28/01/2007
http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=20929

Sabir Amid Mahdi reporter, killed in a car bombing in the Babel governate 2/02/2007
http://www.iraqslogger.com/index.php/post/2215/18_Iraqi_Journalists_Killed_in_2007

Suhad Al-Khalidi Reporter for Iraqi Media Network, killed by US troops when their patrol passes by her car in Hilla 4/02/2007
http://www.iraqslogger.com/index.php/post/2215/18_Iraqi_Journalists_Killed_in_2007

Unknown security guard 7/02/2007
Three guards working for the government funded al-Iraqiya TV were killed by fire of foreign security guards in central Baghdad, a media source said. Foreign security guards accompanying a delegation shot and killed three guards working for al-Iraqiya TV.

Unknown security guard 7/02/2007
Three guards working for the government funded al-Iraqiya TV were killed by fire of foreign security guards in central Baghdad, a media source said. Foreign security guards accompanying a delegation shot and killed three guards working for al-Iraqiya TV.

Unknown security guard 7/02/2007
Three guards working for the government funded al-Iraqiya TV were killed by fire of foreign security guards in central Baghdad, a media source said. Foreign security guards accompanying a delegation shot and killed three guards working for al-Iraqiya TV

Hussein Al Zubaydi journalist with the weekly al-Ahali 19/02/2007
killed by gunmen in unclear circumstances in Baghdad

Rasoul Abdul Hussein reporter, killed together with his wife in Diwaniya 21/02/2007
http://www.iraqslogger.com/index.php/post/2215/18_Iraqi_Journalists_Killed_in_2007

Youssef Sabri Iraqi TV journalist for Biladi TV, a privately-owned station affiliated with al-Dawa 14/03/2007
was among the 22 killed from a car bombing at a Baghdad checkpoint in the al Dawra district in the south of Baghdad. He was reportedly at the checkpoint to film Shia pilgrims leaving the capital for the holy city of Karbala.

Hussein al Jaburi editor of the daily al-Safir 16/03/2007
He died from his injuries in a hospital in Amman, Jordan on 16 March where he was taken for treatment after being ambushed outside his Baghdad home on 11 February.

Hamid al-Duleimi producer on the TV channel al-Nahrain 19/03/2007
His body was found dead in the Baghdad morgue. He had been abducted two days previously as he left the channel’s studios.

Hamid Mohammed Salih program director for the Dijlah radio station, is assassinated in the Jami'a district 19/03/2007
http://www.iraqslogger.com/index.php/post/2215/18_Iraqi_Journalists_Killed_in_2007

Mohammed Jassim Yousif reporter for the Iraqi Media Network, assassinated west of Baghdad
31/03/2007 http://www.iraqslogger.com/index.php/post/2215/18_Iraqi_Journalists_Killed_in_2007

Khamel Mohsin well-known to Iraqis as a TV and radio presenter during the Saddam Hussein era. 3/04/2007
kidnapped by gunmen as she left her office in the university district on 3 April. Her body was found the next day. She had worked for Radio Sawa since Saddam’s removal.

Husain Nizaer journalist trainee - Baghdad TV 5/04/2007
killed and at least 12 people were wounded in an attack on the satellite TV station yesterday in which a truck laden with explosives was driven at the building and then gunmen opened fire.

Iman Yussef Abdallah radio mouthpiece of the Mosul workers' union 12/04/2007
Gunmen shot dead Iman Yussef Abdallah and her husband in an eastern area of the city, the Iraqi Association for the Defence of Journalists' Rights said. Their bodies were later set alight in their vehicle, Unknown

Staff employee of Radio Dijla 3/05/2007

gunmen attacked staff at the independent radio station in a predominantly Sunni area of Baghdad, killing two and wounding five, and then bombed the building and knocked the station off the air

Aqeel Abdul-Qader writer working for al-Raad. 9/05/2007
A police source told Reuters that the men were targeted because of their work, and that they were actually dragged from the car first and tortured before being shot.

Nibras Razzaq Driver 9/05/2007
The killed journalists were Raad Mutashar, chairman of Kirkuk writers' union and owner of al-Raad media institution, which publishes a number of papers, and Imad Abdul-Razzaq al-Obeidi and Aqeel Abdul-Qader, both writers working for al-Raad.

Aidan Abdullah al-Jamiji in charge of Kirkuk television's Turkoman language section
26/05/2007
the body of Aidan Abdullah al-Jamiji, who was in charge of Kirkuk television's Turkoman language section and was a well-known local musician, was found on 26 May in the boot of his car. The car had been torched and dumped near a cemetery in the northern c

Mohammed Hilal Karji Journalist for Baghdad TV 7/06/2007
kidnapped June 7 outside his home while on his way to work in the Yousifiyah region south of Baghdad, and his bullet-ridden body was found in a morgue the following day, an official at the station said.
Unknown


correspondent for the Egyptian daily Al-Ahram
19/06/2007
At least 78 people were killed and 224 wounded, including a correspondent for the Egyptian daily Al-Ahram, in a car bomb explosion targeting the Shi’ite Khillani mosque in a crowded area of central Baghdad on Tuesday afternoon

Zeena Shakir Mahmoud former radio broadcaster, was writing about women's affairs for the Al-Haqiqa newspaper
24/06/2007
Zeena Shakir Mahmoud was shot to death on her way home from work in Mosul. Although she worked for a Kurdish paper, she was a Sunni Arab.

Rahim Al-Maliki Reporter Al-Iraqiya and poet
25/06/2007
http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=22723

Sarmad Hamdi al-Hassani Journalist for Baghdad TV 27/06/2007
Hassani, 43, was seized from his home in Baghdad's Jamia neighborhood on June 27, his body found the next day, the official said.

Hamed Abd Farhan veteran journalist who had worked for the Iraqi News Agency for over 30 years, as well as several local newspapers and magazines 27/06/2007
Gunmen assassinated an Iraqi journalist near his house in the Turath disrict of southern Baghdad, a source from the Iraqi Journalists Union said.Most recently he worked in the media bureau of the Baghdad Municipality.

Louaï Souleimane Reporter Nineveh 28/06/2007
http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=22809

Ali Watan Journalist for Samawa local TV 7/07/2007
killed in the clashes that erupted between security forces and fighters of the Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi army in the southern Iraqi city of Samawa during the last two days
Unknown

translator for Reuters 14/07/2007

Gunmen shot dead an Iraqi who worked as a translator for Reuters in Baghdad this week.Family members said they did not want to reveal the name of their son.

Adnan Al-Safi correspondent for the Al-Anwar satellite channel 25/07/2007
shot by a sniper’s bullet in the Utaifiya district of Baghdad

Abdul Khaliq al-Habir al-Anbaki caricaturist in al-Mutamar newspaper 26/07/2007
killed along with his 11-member-family in the car bombing attack that took place on Thursday in Karrada, central Baghdad

Anwar Abbas Lafta CBS translator 26/08/2007
killed by gunmen who stole him from his home. His body was found in the morgue last night

Amir al Rashidi cameraman who works for Al-Iraqiya 3/09/2007
Unidentified gunmen killed Amir al Rashidi, a cameraman who works for Al-Iraqiya, in the centre of Mosul on Monday night

Muhannad Ghanim Al Ubeidi Journalist Radio Dar al-Salam Mosul 20/09/2007
Unidentified gunmen have killed Muhannad Ghanim Ahmed, who worked for the privately owned Radio Dar al-Salam, in the eastern Al-Muharibeen district of the city.

Jawad al-Daami, Iraqi television presenter working with the private Al-Baghdadiyah channel
23/09/2007

He was ambushed in the western Baghdad neighbourhood of Al-Qadisiyah as he was driving through the area on Sunday. Gunmen opened fire on his car and Daami was killed instantly.

These 45 Iraqi media professionals deserve to be remembered, especially by organisations that claim to defend their interests. Looking at these figures is a good reason for journalists not to use CPJ's tallies anymore in an article about the killing of a journalist.

Once more I would like to plead for a serious count of killed media professionals who died in this bloody war. Or is the life of an Iraqi media worker less worth than that of his colleagues in the West, where killed journalist are meticulously counted?

I would also like to plead for the creation of an independent journalists organisation that can really defend the interests of journalists in Iraq, and is not linked in one way or another to the mainstream media that are owned by the very same people who have advocated for this war to take place, who keep on defending the occupation and remain silent about the catastrophic situation that is being rightfully defined by ever more people as a genocide.

Dirk Adriaensens, 29 September 2007.