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Reuters Journo Held by US in Iraq 8 Months

No charges against photographer; military cites insurgent ties

By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff

Posted May 24, 2009 7:28 AM CDT
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(Newser) – Amid the outrage over journalist Roxana Saberi’s detention in Iran, the US is holding a Reuters photographer in Iraq without charges, the Los Angeles Times reports. Ibrahim Jassam, 31, has been held since September “as the result of his activity with a known insurgent organization,” said a US military rep. An Iraqi court ordered his release in November, but the US is still holding him, calling him a “high security threat.”

“No one is suggesting that journalists should have a get-out-of-jail-free card," said the head of the Committee to Protect Journalists. "But if you accuse someone of something there needs to be a fair legal process.”

Ibrahim Jassam, an Iraqi who has supplied photos and video to Reuters for two years, poses last year in Baghdad.
Ibrahim Jassam, an Iraqi who has supplied photos and video to Reuters for two years, poses last year in Baghdad.   (AP Photo/Mohammed Ameen, Reuters)
Freed US-Iranian journalist Roxana Saberi talks to member of the media after she arrived at Washington Dulles International Airport in Chantilly, Va., on Friday.
Freed US-Iranian journalist Roxana Saberi talks to member of the media after she arrived at Washington Dulles International Airport in Chantilly, Va., on Friday.   (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)
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COMMENTS
Showing 1 of 1 comment
Are_you--Nobody--Too
May 24, 2009 6:18 AM CDT
I wonder if Jesse Jackson will try to make this more public. The more people know about this, the more the United States will at least try to appear fair to Ibrahim Jassam, whether or not that brings him justice.

Committee to Protect Journalists' Jassam profile
Committee to Protect Journalists

World • Media

 
Iraq • US military • detainee • photographers • journalist • photojournalist • Committee to Protect Journalists • Roxana Saberi • Ibrahim Jassam

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