Anne-Sophie Le Mauff has left Iraq

French journalist Anne Sophie Le Mauff, correspondent in Iraq for several French-language media, left Baghdad on 24 June for Amman after being ordered to leave by the Iraqi authorities. She should have left the Iraqi capital the previous day but her flight was cancelled because of a sandstorm. The French foreign ministry has denied asking Iraq to expel her, saying that it was "a sovereign decision of the Iraqi authorities". The journalist told Reporters Without Borders that she was intended to work temporarily out of the Jordanian capital. ---------------------- 21.06.2005 - Government to expel French journalist Reporters Without Borders today condemned an Iraqi government decision to expel French freelance journalist Anne-Sophie Le Mauff, reportedly at the request of the French authorities. Le Mauff told the press freedom organisation that Iraqi interior ministry officials informed her today she would receive the expulsion order tomorrow. She said they told her the decision had been taken at her own government's request. "Expelling a foreign journalist is a serious press freedom violation and does great harm to the image of a government that has always stressed its support for democratic values," Reporters Without Borders said. "And it is unacceptable if the French authorities really did ask the Iraqis to expel Le Mauff," the press freedom organisation said. "We are clearly aware of the gravity of the situation in Iraq and the risks being run by all journalists, including French ones. But it is not up to the French authorities to decided which journalist should or should not stay in Iraq. It is up to the journalists themselves and their employers. Government meddling, even for safety reasons, cannot be tolerated." Reporters Without Borders added: "This is all the more absurd as we have already been in contact with Le Mauff about reducing the risks for her. She promised us yesterday she would not leave her hotel as long as the current situation continues. At the same time, the various news organisations she works for in France and elsewhere were considering the possibility of bringing her back to France and guaranteeing her a reasonable income for as long as it took to find a way to ensure her safety in Iraq." The French newspaper Le Canard Enchaîné reported on 15 June that France's ambassador in Iraq, Bernard Bajolet, had written to Le Mauff asking her to leave the country. "Like your fellow journalists, you must be asking yourself if the freedom and the need to report the news warrants such risks for you and for the others, as well as the serious consequences that a possible abduction might entail for our country," the letter reportedly said, adding: "There is no way of justifying your continuing to work in Iraq." Le Mauff has been in Iraq for more than a year, stringing for a range of news media including the French dailies L'Humanité and Sud-Ouest, and such radio stations as Radio Monte-Carlo, Radio Vatican and Radio Canada.