Incident

DCMF condemns murder of Iraqi journalist

Cause of death

Other non-natural

Details

Veteran journalist and long time member of the Iraqi Journalists Syndicate, Zamil Ghanam Al-Zoba’ie's body was found in Baghdad on June 9.

The Gulf Centre for Human Rights has reported that the body of Iraqi journalist, Zamil Ghanam Al-Zoba’ie was discovered in Baghdad on June 9, reportedly having been targeted by an unknown terrorist group because of his work.

Al-Zoba’ie had been a member of the Iraqi Journalists Syndicate for 30 years and had worked for a number of media outlets including the Iraqi News Agency and the Al-Jamhoriah newspaper, and he has also had numerous articles published in Habazboz, Al Qarar and Al Ayam newspapers.

Iraq is regarded as one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists and the culture of impunity there means that journalists are often targeted by various criminal and terrorist groups because of their work. Doha Centre for Media Freedom released a statement condemning the murder of Zamil Ghanem Al-Zoba’ie and calling for an end to the rise of impunity in Iraq which has seen journalists consistently targeted for carrying out their work. “

Journalists should never be considered legitimate targets and must always be granted the same rights and protections as civilians. The Iraqi government needs to take tangible and significant steps towards battling impunity and for protecting press freedom within the country.”

“Protecting journalists is essential to defending the right of access to information, the basic human right from which all others flow. It is essential that the authorities in Iraq take steps to offer a safer working environment for journalists within their country to build a peaceful and safe democracy for its citizens.”

>> Read the original article here Source: DCMF