Syria: French Journalist Killed in Homs
ANHRI denounces the successive violence against journalists and opinion makers
ANHRI condemns the ongoing killing and attacks against journalists in Syria while performing their job in filming and reporting the daily violations committed against the Syrian people. ANHRI is also deeply disturbed over the silence of the Arab and international community on these flagrant violations.
On 11 January, French reporter Gilles Jacquier of the French TV station 2 was killed while a group of journalists in Homs were being shelled. Jacquier is the first foreign journalist to be killed in Syria since the outbreak of its uprising. Prior to his death, Jacquier had filmed the victims of bombing al-Salihiya neighborhood in Homs. He had also done coverage reports in several unsafe countries, such as Afghanistan, Iraq, and Yemen.
On 3 January, Syrian journalist Shukri Abu-Barghal, died of his wounds as he had been shot in the face on 31 December 2011. His son, Ayham Abu-Barghal, said that his father was shot in his house while he was writing an article, and was thus transferred to al-Mowasat hospital in Damascus.
Murders against protesters and civilians take place on daily basis that it has become difficult to determine the numbers of the victims. However, the last statistics on the numbers of victims estimated by international organizations ranged around 5000 people scattered among different cities, with Homs and Hamah in the forefront since mid-March.
“The murders, assaults, and intimidation that journalists face are flagrant violations of freedom of opinion and expression by an illegitimate regime that refuses to step down. They are also part of an organized campaign that primarily aims to cover up the truth and the reporting of the violations committed against the Syrian people” said ANHRI.
“What is the Arab League waiting for to openly demand the step down of this atrocious regime and the trial of its representatives? We are saddened to learn that the Arab League decided to suspend sending new observers to Syria after an attack on its working team, without taking an explicit stance or even shed light on the scale of violations committed against the Syrian people and media practitioners” added ANHRI.
