Iraqi cameraman working for Reuters shot dead in unclear circumstances

Reporters Without Borders today called on the United States to carry out a proper investigation into the death of Dhia Najim, an Iraqi freelance cameraman working for the news agency Reuters who was shot dead in disputed circumstances yesterday in the town of Ramadi, west of Baghdad. "As Dhia Najim's family accuses US soldiers of being responsible, we call on the US defence department to carry out a thorough and honest investigation in order to clarify the troubling circumstances in which he died," the organisation said. At least nine journalists have been killed by US gunfire since the start of the war in Iraq in March 2003 without any serious investigation ever being conducted to establish how they died. They were Tarek Ayyoub (Al-Jazeera), Taras Protsyuk (Reuters), José Couso (Telecinco), Mazen Dana (Reuters), Ali Al-Khatib (Al-Arabiya), Ali Abdel Aziz (Al-Arabiya), Assad Kadhim (Al-Iraqiya), Hussein Saleh (Al-Iraqiya) and Mazen Al-Tomaizi (Al-Ekhbariya). Najim's death brings the total number of journalists and media assistants killed since the start of the war to 46. Iraq today is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists, who run many kinds of risks there. In addition to US military gunfire, they are the targets of organised crime and groups of armed combatants. The latter have above all targeted Iraqi journalists working for foreign news media. A US army communique said that Najim, 47, was filming clashes between US marines and Iraqi rebels in the Andulus district of Ramadi when he was shot in the neck. The US military authorities said they had looked at the footage he had taken and claimed that it showed rebels preparing to attack coalition forces. Reuters said it had seen video footage of Najim's death. The agency, which did not identify the source of the footage, said it indicated that he was killed by a sniper shot without any signs of fighting going on at the time. A Reuters dispatch also noted that press photographs taken on 31 October showed US marine snipers taking up position in Ramadi. Reuters ruled out any possibility Najim being linked to the rebels and called for a thorough investigation by the US army. Najim's colleagues and family believe he was killed by a US sniper.