By Daryl Lang
© Reuters / Mohammed Ameen
Ibrahim Jassam Mohammed
An Iraqi court says there is no evidence against Reuters
photojournalist
Ibrahim Jassam Mohammed and has ordered him
released from U.S. military custody.
Jassam’s case resembles those of several other Iraqi photographers
and cameramen working for Western news organizations, all of whom
were eventually freed. And the decision comes as the U.S. is
releasing thousands of security detainees and preparing to turn its
much-maligned detainee system over to the Iraqi government.
The order to free Jassam came November 30 from the Iraqi Central
Criminal Court, according to Reuters. Jassam is being held as a
security detainee at Camp Cropper, near the Baghdad airport.
Jassam has covered the Iraq war as a freelancer for news
organizations including Reuters, which has advocated for his
release. “I’m pleased to learn that a court ordered Ibrahim Jassam
released as there was no evidence against him,” Reuters News
Editor-in-Chief
David Schlesinger said in a statement.
Jassam was arrested September 2 at his home in Mahmudiya, about 20
miles south of Baghdad. U.S. and Iraqi forces raided Jassam’s home
and confiscated his photo equipment. A military spokesperson said
at the time that Jassam was considered a threat and his case was
being evaluated.
Reuters reported that Iraqi prosecutors dropped the case against
Jassam on lack of evidence, and that the U.S. had no immediate
comment November 30.
As part of a recent agreement between U.S. and Iraqi authorities,
the U.S. plans to release its security detainees or hand them over
to the Iraqi government next year, unless they have been charged.
The U.S. military says it is holding 15,800 detainees, having
released 17,500 so far this year. The U.S. is trying to build
criminal cases against 5,000 detainees deemed to be dangerous,
according to a recent Associated Press story.
The AP reports that 100,000 people have passed through the system
since the war began. Among them are about 20 journalists,
according to Reporters Without Borders. They include at least three
still photographers.
Some of the detained Iraqi journalists were held for months,
including Reuters photographer
Ali al-Mashhadani, who has
been arrested and released three times. From 2006 to 2008,
Associated Press photographer
Bilal Hussein was held for
over two years as a security threat, accused of aiding the Iraqi
insurgency. Hussein was released in April after an Iraqi judge
ordered his release.
Related stories
Sept. 4: Another Iraqi Photographer Detained as “Security
Threat”
April 16: Lawyer: Only Two Witnesses Testified Against Bilal
Hussein
April 16: After Two Years In U.S. Custody, Photographer Bilal
Hussein Goes Free
Photographer Ibrahim Jassam Ordered Freed in Iraq, Reuters Says
Dec 1, 2008
By Daryl Lang
Ibrahim Jassam Mohammed
An Iraqi court says there is no evidence against Reuters photojournalist
Ibrahim Jassam Mohammed and has ordered him released from U.S. military custody.
Jassam’s case resembles those of several other Iraqi photographers and cameramen working for Western news organizations, all of whom were eventually freed. And the decision comes as the U.S. is releasing thousands of security detainees and preparing to turn its much-maligned detainee system over to the Iraqi government.
The order to free Jassam came November 30 from the Iraqi Central Criminal Court, according to Reuters. Jassam is being held as a security detainee at Camp Cropper, near the Baghdad airport.
Jassam has covered the Iraq war as a freelancer for news organizations including Reuters, which has advocated for his release. “I’m pleased to learn that a court ordered Ibrahim Jassam released as there was no evidence against him,” Reuters News Editor-in-Chief
David Schlesinger said in a statement.
Jassam was arrested September 2 at his home in Mahmudiya, about 20 miles south of Baghdad. U.S. and Iraqi forces raided Jassam’s home and confiscated his photo equipment. A military spokesperson said at the time that Jassam was considered a threat and his case was being evaluated.
Reuters reported that Iraqi prosecutors dropped the case against Jassam on lack of evidence, and that the U.S. had no immediate comment November 30.
As part of a recent agreement between U.S. and Iraqi authorities, the U.S. plans to release its security detainees or hand them over to the Iraqi government next year, unless they have been charged.
The U.S. military says it is holding 15,800 detainees, having released 17,500 so far this year. The U.S. is trying to build criminal cases against 5,000 detainees deemed to be dangerous, according to a recent Associated Press story.
The AP reports that 100,000 people have passed through the system since the war began. Among them are about 20 journalists, according to Reporters Without Borders. They include at least three still photographers.
Some of the detained Iraqi journalists were held for months, including Reuters photographer
Ali al-Mashhadani, who has been arrested and released three times. From 2006 to 2008, Associated Press photographer
Bilal Hussein was held for over two years as a security threat, accused of aiding the Iraqi insurgency. Hussein was released in April after an Iraqi judge ordered his release.
Related stories
Sept. 4: Another Iraqi Photographer Detained as “Security Threat”
April 16: Lawyer: Only Two Witnesses Testified Against Bilal Hussein
April 16: After Two Years In U.S. Custody, Photographer Bilal Hussein Goes Free
