Rise in journalist deaths threatens Iraqi civil society

“The constant threats and abductions she endured, and her eventual murder, are stark reminders of the sacrifice she made to tell the Iraqi story to the world,” stated Joel Simon, the executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists. Simon’s words were in response to the June 7 murder of Sahar Hussein Ali al-Haydari, an Iraqi journalist working for the program Aswat Al-Iraq (Voice of Iraq). Al-Haydari is just one of 18 journalists that have been killed since January, according to RFE/RFL.

Many Iraqi reporters and their families are relocating in an attempt to protect themselves from the attacks being committed against reporters. Members of the Iraqi media are at high risk because their organizations can seldom afford the cost of protection for their journalists – in contrast to Western media correspondents, who typically work with a security team. Media watchdog group Reporters Without Borders says that since 2003, 182 journalists and assistants have been kidnapped for their reporting. Attacks are being carried out by insurgents in an in attempt to intimidate media professionals, and therefore sway public perception on the security situation in Iraq.

For the full article, click here.