12 journalists killed since early April

Reporters Without Borders called today on Iraqi and US officials to make "serious and speedy investigations" into the murders of the 12 journalists and media assistants in Iraq since 1 April. It also asked the US army, as the body responsible for a number of errors that cost journalists their lives, to "show better judgement" and to punish the soldiers responsible for these mistakes. Ahmed Jabbat Hashim, of the daily Al Sabah, was the first to die, on 1 April, a day after being kidnapped in Baghdad. Fadel Hazem Fadel, of Al-Hurriya TV, and his cameraman Ali Abrahim Aissa, were killed when their vehicle was blown up on their way to cover a car-bomb explosion south of Baghdad on 14 April. The next day, Shamal Abdallah Assad, of the Kurdish station Kirkuk TV, was shot dead in a Kirkuk street. Saleh Ibrahim, an Associated Press cameraman, was killed in an explosion on 23 April probably aimed at US troops. In May, two Iraqi journalists - Najem Abed Khodair, who worked for the independent dailies Al-Madaa and Tariq al-Chaab, and Ahmad Adam, of Al-Madaa and the newspaper Sbah - died after having their throats cut on their way to Kerbala. After a brief lull in attacks on journalists, Yasser Al Salihy, of the US Knight Ridder newspaper group, was killed as he drove his car on 22 June. The same day, Jassem al-Qais, of the daily Al-Siyada, was also killed in his car, 10 kms north of Baghdad. Iraqi producer Wael al-Bacri, who worked for the TV station Al-Sharkiyah, was killed by US army gunfire on 28 June, allegedly because he was too close to a military convoy. Khaled Sabih al-Attar, a producer for the Iraqi state TV station Al-Iraqia and for Nainava TV, was kidnapped and killed in Mosul on 1 July. Two days later, Maha Ibrahim, editor in chief of Baghdad TV, was killed, probably by US military gunfire.