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Two Japanese
journalists and their Iraqi interpreter killed
Two Japanese freelance journalists (picture), Kotaro
Ogawa, 61, and his nephew Shinsuke Hashida, 33, and
their Iraqi interpreter were killed late yesterday in an
attack on the road between Mahmoudiya and Latifiya, 30
km south of Baghdad. Ogawa was an experienced war
correspondent. A total of 30 journalists and media
assistants killed since the start of the war.
Two Japanese freelance
journalists, Kotaro Ogawa, 61, and his nephew Shinsuke
Hashida, 33, and their Iraqi interpreter were killed
late yesterday in an attack on the road between
Mahmoudiya and Latifiya, 30 km south of Baghdad. Ogawa
was an experienced war correspondent.
They had just left the
Japanese military base in the town of Samawa, south of
Baghdad, and were heading towards the capital when their
vehicle was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade fired by
an armed group. The vehicle caught fired and exploded.
Only the driver, who was injured, managed to get out in
time.
The director of the
hospital in Mahmoudiya, Imad al Maleki, told the news
agency Reuters that their bodies were very badly burned.
The Japanese authorities have not yet been able to
officially identify the bodies of the two journalists.
The area around
Mahmoudiya has seen repeated attacks and fighting
between armed groups and US troops and is one of the
most dangerous places in Iraq. Two journalists working
for the Polish public television station, TVP, Waldemar
Milewicz (a Polish citizen) and Mounir Bouamrane (an
Algerian), were killed there on 7 May by gunfire of
unidentified origin. Two Iraqis working for the US
television news network CNN, Duraid Isa Mohammed (an
interpreter) and Yasser Khatab (a driver) were also
killed there in an ambush by unidentified armed men on
27 January.
Iraq is one of the most
dangerous countries in the world for the press. At least
30 journalists and media assistants have been killed
there since the start of the war in March 2003. Sixteen
of them, including 12 Iraqis, have been killed since the
beginning of 2004.
Reporters Without Borders
defends imprisoned journalists and press freedom
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public and to be informed, in accordance with Article 19
of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Reporters
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© Reporters Without Borders 2004 |
