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Pentagon Acquits Itself In Killing Of Journalists |
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by ML
(No verified email address) |
12 Aug 2003
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The New York Times is reporting that the Pentagon, after conducting an internal investigation, has acquited itself of any fault in the death of two journalists by Abrams tank fire on the Palestine Hotel, well-known location of most of the foreign press, during the U.S. attack on Baghdad. |
Picture of the skyline of Baghdad from the firing position of the tank involved. It shows how the Palestine and Sheraton Hotels dominate the view of the east bank of the Tigris River. (Molly Bingham for CPJ)
The New York Times is reporting that the Pentagon, after conducting an internal investigation, has acquitted itself of any fault in the death of two journalists by Abrams tank fire on the Palestine Hotel, well-known location of most of the foreign press, during the U.S. attack on Baghdad.
The Times quoted the Central Command statement, which stated that U.S. Forces "properly fired upon a suspected enemy hunter/killer team in a proportionate and justifiably measured response[and that]...the action was fully in accordance with the Rules of Engagement."
As proof of its assertion that U.S forces had no direct complicity in the attack on this easy-to-identify landmark on the skyline of Baghdad, one of the most sensitive spots during the capture of the Iraqi capital, the Central Command cited "the fierce enemy resistance" that day in that portion of Baghdad, and said Iraqi forces were firing "from the roofs and windows of surrounding buildings..." as the reason the tank crew fired a 120-mm projectile from across the Tigris River at the hotel filled with journalists. The shell struck a 15th-floor balcony of the hotel, fatally wounding veteran Reuters cameraman Taras Protsyuk and Spanish cameraman José Couso of Telecinco, along with wounding three other journalists.
This conclusion contradicts the findings of the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ - http://www.cpj.org/), which found in a report released in May that "Pentagon officials, as well as commanders on the ground in Baghdad, knew that the Palestine Hotel was full of international journalists and were intent on not hitting it. However, these senior officers apparently failed to convey their concern to the tank commander who fired on the hotel."
The Pentagon's report thus seems focused on avoiding any culpability, rather than an earnest search for the failures in the chain of command in passing important information to operational units assigned to do the actual fighting. Although such incidents are often blamed on "the fog of war," if the incident against this easily identifiable landmark couldn't be prevented, then journalists must be considered "fair game" as far as having no distinction in the eyes of the U.S military from enemy combatants and civilians. Such a result fulfills the chilling leaks that proceeded the war that any journalist who was not "embedded" with a U.S. military unit could find a bomb homing in on their satellite phone if the were anywhere in the area under attack by U.S. forces.
For more complete information, visit the Committee to Protect Journalists, where the report is available:
http://www.cpj.org/Briefings/2003/palestine_hotel/palestine_hotel.html |
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Another Journalist Killed By U.S. Fire: Reuters Urges U.S. To Probe Killing Of Cameraman |
by Reuters
(No verified email address) |
Current rating: 0
18 Aug 2003
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LONDON (Reuters) - Reuters called on the United States on Monday to launch a comprehensive investigation into Sunday's killing of one of the international news agency's television cameramen by U.S. troops in Iraq.
Noting that Mazen Dana was the second Reuters journalist killed in Baghdad in four months, Chief Executive Tom Glocer said: ``Coming so soon after the death of Taras Protsyuk, also killed by a U.S. tank, this latest death is hard to bear.
``That's why I am personally calling upon the highest levels of the U.S. government for a full and comprehensive investigation into this terrible tragedy.''
Dana, a 43-year-old award-winning Palestinian, had reported largely from his volatile home town of Hebron. He was shot by a U.S. soldier on a tank as he filmed near the Abu Ghraib prison in the western outskirts of the Iraqi capital.
Protsyuk, a 35-year-old Ukrainian based in Warsaw, died on April 8 when a U.S. tank fired a shell at the Palestine Hotel, base for many foreign media. He was filming from a balcony, covering the arrival of U.S. troops in the city center.
``I am deeply saddened to report the death of another Reuters journalist in Iraq once again at the hands of U.S. troops,'' Glocer said in a statement.
``Mazen was one of our most experienced television cameramen and brought the world pictures from many of the most violent conflicts of the last decade.
``A particular memory I have of him is the moving remarks he made when he accepted the Press Freedom Award from the Committee to Protect Journalists for his outstanding bravery in upholding press freedom. This was for his work in Hebron where he was wounded and beaten many times.
``I know I speak for all of us in extending our sincerest sympathies and heartfelt gratitude to Mazen's widow Suzan and his four children.'' |
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Reporters Fault U.S. Troops In Iraq Death |
by Tarek Al-Issawi, AP
(No verified email address) |
Current rating: 0
18 Aug 2003
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BAGHDAD, Iraq - Fellow journalists accused U.S. troops of negligence in the shooting death of a Reuters cameraman, saying it was clear the victim was a newsman when soldiers on two tanks opened fire. Press advocacy groups called for an investigation.
Mazen Dana, 43, was shot and killed by U.S. soldiers Sunday while videotaping near a U.S.-run prison on the outskirts of Baghdad. The U.S. Army said its soldiers mistook his camera for a rocket-propelled grenade launcher.
Press advocacy groups Reporters Without Borders and the U.S.-based Committee to Protect Journalists demanded a full investigation into the shooting.
Reporters Without Borders urged Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld to conduct an "honest, rapid" investigation. The group also noted that there have been isolated cases in which soldiers in Iraq (http://search.yahoo.com/bin/search?cs=nw&p=Iraq) have been hostile to the news media.
"Such behavior is unacceptable and must be punished. It is essential that clear instructions and calls for caution are given to soldiers in the field so that freedom of movement and work of journalists is accepted in Iraq," the group said in a statement.
The film Dana shot showed a tank driving toward him. Six shots were heard, and the camera appeared to tilt forward and drop to the ground after the first shot.
Dana was working outside the Abu Ghraib prison after a mortar attack there Sunday in which six prisoners were killed and about 60 wounded. Witnesses said Dana was dressed in civilian clothes.
"We were all there, for at least half an hour. They knew we were journalists. After they shot Mazen, they aimed their guns at us. I don't think it was accident. They are very tense. They are crazy," said Stephan Breitner of France 2 television.
Breitner said soldiers tried to resuscitate Dana but failed.
A U.S. military official said on condition of anonymity that American soldiers saw Dana from a distance and mistook him for an Iraqi guerrilla, so they opened fire. When the soldiers came closer, they realized Dana was a journalist, the official said.
"This is clearly another tragic incident, it is extremely regrettable," Central Command spokesman Sgt. Maj. Lewis Matson said.
Dana's driver, Munzer Abbas, said Dana had got out of the car when he saw the tanks approaching.
"We saw a tank, 50 meters away. I heard six shots and Mazen fell to the ground. One of the soldiers started shouting at us, but when he knew we were journalists, he softened. One of the soldiers told us they thought Mazen was carrying a rocket-propelled grenade," said Abbas.
"There were many journalists around. They knew we were journalists. This was not an accident," he said.
Reuters quoted soundman Nael al-Shyoukhi, who was with Dana, as saying that the U.S. soldiers "saw us and they knew about our identities and our mission.
"After we filmed we went into the car and prepared to go when a convoy led by a tank arrived and Mazen stepped out of the car to film. I followed him and Mazen walked three to four meters (yards). We were noted and seen clearly," al-Shyoukhi said.
"A soldier on the tank shot at us. I lay on the ground. I heard Mazen and I saw him scream and touching his chest.
"I cried at the soldier, telling him you killed a journalist. They shouted at me and asked me to step back and I said 'I will step back but please help, please help and stop the bleed.'"
He said they tried to help him but Dana was bleeding heavily.
"Mazen took a last breath and died before my eyes."
At the Reuters headquarters in Baghdad, the mood was gloomy, and journalists from different organizations converged to express condolences. Dana's camera lay on the floor in the editing room.
"Mazen was one of Reuters' finest cameramen and we are devastated by his loss. He was a brave and an award winning journalist who had worked in many of the world's hotspots," said Stephen Jukes, Reuters' global head of news, in a statement.
Dana's death brings to 13 the number of journalists who were killed in Iraq since the start of the war on March 20. Two Independent Television News journalists, cameraman Fred Nerac of France and translator Hussein Osman of Lebanon, have been missing since shooting incident March 22 in southern Iraq in which correspondent Terry Lloyd was killed.
An outspoken critic of the Israeli government's treatment of journalists, Dana was honored by the Committee to Protect Journalists with an International Press Freedom Award in November 2001 for his work covering conflict in his hometown of Hebron in the West Bank. He was shot at least three times in 2000, according to the citation on the group's web site.
Dana was married and had four children.
"Words and images are a public trust and for this reason I will continue with my work regardless of the hardships, even if it costs me my life," Dana said after accepting the award.
"He was committed to covering the story wherever it was and he was an inspiration to friends and colleagues at Reuters and throughout the industry," Jukes said.
Abbas, the driver, recalled how Dana was telling al-Shyoukhi of the war stories he had covered over the years.
"He said he wanted to take a shot of the prison from a house with a vantage point. Nael told him to be careful because of the Americans. Mazen said he wasn't too worried as long as they don't shoot him." |
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US Admits Cameraman Was Shot Dead At Close Range |
by Justin Huggle
(No verified email address) |
Current rating: 0
19 Aug 2003
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The American army admitted yesterday that its soldiers killed an award-winning Reuters cameraman. Mazen Dana, a Palestinian, was shot dead by a US tank crew at close range while trying to film outside Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison on Sunday, after a mortar attack on the prison.
The Americans claimed that the soldiers mistook the camera Mr Dana was holding for a rocket-propelled grenade launcher - a claim that was immediately rejected by journalists who witnessed the killing.
"We were all there, for at least half an hour. They knew we were journalists," said Stephan Breitner of France 2 television. "After they shot Mazen, they aimed their guns at us. I don't think it was an accident. They are very tense. They are crazy. They are young soldiers and they don't understand what is happening."
Mr Dana's driver, Munzer Abbas, said: "There were many journalists around. They knew we were journalists. This was not an accident."
Mr Dana's colleagues said the tank was 30 metres from him when it opened fire. Television cameras do not look like RPG launchers: at such close range it should have been impossible to confuse the two.
A senior US Army spokesman offered condolences to Mr Dana's family, but said soldiers would not fire warning shots when they believed they were under threat. Lt-Col Guy Shields said: "I can't give you details on the rules of engagement, but the enemy is not in formations, they are not wearing uniforms. During wartime, firing a warning shot is not a necessity. There is no time for a warning shot if there is potential for an ambush."
The Reuters team had identified themselves to American soldiers guarding the perimeter of the prison, and they had been given permission to film. Nael al-Shyouki, a Reuters soundman working with Mr Dana, said: "After we filmed, we went into the car and prepared to go when a convoy led by a tank arrived and Mazen stepped out of the car to film. I followed him and Mazen walked three to four metres. We were noted and seen clearly." He said the American soldiers "saw us and they knew about our identities and mission".
Mr Shyouki described the killing: "A soldier on the tank shot at us. I lay on the ground. I heard Mazen and I saw him scream and touching his chest. I cried at the soldier, telling him, 'you killed a journalist'. They shouted at me and asked me to step back and I said, 'I will step back but please help, please help and stop the bleed'."
The soldiers did try to help but could do nothing. "Mazen took a last breath and died before my eyes," said Mr Shyouki. The 43-year-old cameraman leaves a wife and four children. "He was supposed to be going home today," a Reuters colleague said yesterday.
Mr Dana is the second Reuters cameraman to be killed by US forces in Baghdad. Taras Protsyuk, a Ukrainian, died when a tank fired a shell into the Hotel Palestine, which was full of journalists, as Baghdad was falling. In both cases, witnesses accused the US of knowingly killing a journalist.
Mr Dana was no novice in war zones. His hometown, Hebron in the West Bank, is a dangerous place. In 2001, he won the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) International Press Freedom Award for his work in Hebron. He was shot three times in 2000.
Reuters, the CPJ and Reporters Sans Frontières in Paris called on the American military to conduct a full inquiry into Mr Dana's death.
© 2003 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd
http://news.independent.co.uk/ |
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