On April 8, 2003, three locations in Baghdad housing journalists were fired upon by U.S. armed forces during 2003 invasion of Iraq, killing three journalists and wounding four. April 8 is the 98th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (99th in leap years). ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A street map of Baghdad Average temperature (red) and precipitations (blue) in Baghdad Baghdad (بغداد) is the capital of Iraq and the Baghdad Province. ... The 2003 invasion of Iraq, also called simply the Iraq War or Operation: Iraqi Freedom, was a war that began March 20, 2003, fought between a group of troops consisting primarily of American and British, but also Polish, Australian and several other nations forces, and Iraq. ...

Al Jazeera's office

Two of American air-to-surface missiles hit the Qatar satellite TV station Al Jazeera's office in Baghdad and killed Tariq Ayoub, a Jordanian reporter, and wounded Zouhair al-Iraqi, an Iraqi cameraman. They were live broadcasting on the roof of the building. Al Jazeera accused the U.S. of intentionally targeting Al Jazeera as the U.S. bombed its Kabul bureau in 2001 during the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. A missile (British English: miss-isle; U.S. English: missl) is, in general, a projectile—that is, something thrown or otherwise propelled. ... Direct broadcast satellite, or DBS, is a relatively recent development in the world of television distribution. ... An American family watching television in the 1950s. ... Al Jazeera logo Al Jazeera (الجزيرة), meaning The Island or The (Arabian) Peninsula (whence also Algiers) is an Arabic television channel based in Qatar. ... A street map of Baghdad Average temperature (red) and precipitations (blue) in Baghdad Baghdad (بغداد) is the capital of Iraq and the Baghdad Province. ... A roof is the top covering of a building that prevents the ingress of weather into the building interior. ... Building is either the act of creating an object assembled from more than one element, or the object itself; see also construction. ... Kabul (Kâbl, in Persian کابل) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan with a population variously estimated at 2 to 4 million. ... The word bureau can refer to: a sort of desk with drawers, such as a writing table or a pedestal desk an office or public agency a public service available on a timeshare basis, especially a computer bureau The original French word bureau referred to an office. ... 2001 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The United States, with support from the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and the Northern Alliance, invaded Afghanistan in October 2001 as part of its War on Terrorism campaign. ...

Palestine Hotel

A U.S. army tank fired into the 15th floor of the Palestine Hotel in Baghdad, where almost all foreign journalists base on. The image of the hotel had been frequently broadcasted in the news, since many journalists filmed their reports nearby. The tank fire killed the Reuters cameraman Taras Protsyuk and wounded three. José Couso of Telecinco Spanish television who was on the 14th floor also died. A nations army is its military, or more specifically, all of its land forces. ... Reuters is a company supplying global financial markets and news media with a range of information products and transactional solutions, including real-time and historical market data, research and analytics, financial trading platforms, investment data and analytics plus news in text, video, graphics and photographs. ...

AFP reported there was no fire aimed at the tank, based on picture taken by a French TV station. Journalists on the scene also testified there was no fire from or around the hotel. General Buford Blount, commander of the 3rd Infantry Division, said it was a response to Iraqi fire from the hotel. The French TV showed the tank's artillery aimed at the hotel for at least two minutes before it fired. Agence France-Presse (abbreviated AFP) is the oldest news agency in the world. ... General is a military rank, in most nations the highest rank, although some nations have the higher rank of Field Marshal. ... Many armies have or have had a 3rd Infantry Division. ...

On that day, the Spanish government decided to demand an explanation from the U.S. Parliamentary democracy was restored following the death of General Franco in 1975, who had ruled since the end of the civil war in 1939. ...

Abu Dhabi's office

Office of the United Arab Emirates satellite channel Abu Dhabi was hit by air strikes. The station airs the picture of Iraqi fire from beneath of the camera. Abu Dhabi or Abu Zaby (Arabic language: أبوظبي) is the largest of the seven emirates that comprise the United Arab Emirates and was also the largest of the former Trucial States. ... A military strike is a limited attack on a specified target. ...

Responses to the three in general

Pentagon

At briefing from The Pentagon on April 8, a reporter asked "(...) There are reports that a tank took small arms and perhaps R.P.G. fire from the direction of the hotel, although journalists say that they saw no sign of it. Do you think that's reason enough for a tank to fire a round at the hotel where you know there are unarmed journalists?" The Pentagon, looking east with the Potomac River and Washington Monument in the distance. ... April 8 is the 98th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (99th in leap years). ...

Major General Stanley McChrystal answered "(...) particularly with this war, journalists have been closer to coalition soldiers than probably ever before with the embedded program, and those who are not. (...) When [forces] get into combat in the cities, which, from the beginning, we had specifically said would be dangerous and difficult, you put yourself in their position, they had the inherent right of self-defense. When they are fired at, they have not only the right to respond, they have the obligation to respond to protect the soldiers with them and to accomplish the mission at large (...)."

U.S. Central Command

At a briefing in Doha, Qatar, Brigadier General Vincent K. Brooks said of the Al Jazeera attack, "This coalition does not target journalists. We don't know every place journalists are operating on the battlefield. It's a dangerous place indeed." Doha (Arabic: الدوحة;, Ad-Dawhah) (population 370,000) is the capital of Qatar, located on the Persian Gulf. ...

Governments

On March 8, Spanish and Portuguese governments insisted that all the journalists of the countries evacuate from Baghdad.

Journalist and civil organizations

Committee to Protect Journalists sent a letter to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to demand investigation. Reporters Without Borders demanded proof to Donald Rumsfeld that the incidents "were not deliberate attempts to dissuade the media from reporting." Amnesty International demanded independent investigation. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is an independent, nonprofit organization based in New York which is dedicated to promoting press freedom worldwide and defending the right of journalists to report the news without fear of reprisal. ... The United States Secretary of Defense is the head of the United States Department of Defense, concerned with the armed services and The Secretary is appointed by the President with the approval of the Senate, and is a member of the Cabinet. ... Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (born July 9, 1932) is the current Secretary of Defense of the United States, since January 20, 2001, under President George W. Bush. ... Reporters Without Borders, or RWB (French: Reporters sans frontières, or RSF) is an international non-governmental organization devoted to freedom of the press. ... Amnesty International (or AI) is an international non-governmental organization, the stated purpose of which is to promote all the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international standards. ...

See also

• 2003 invasion of Iraq media coverage

Media coverage of the 2003 invasion of Iraq was different in certain ways from that of the 1990-1991 Gulf War. ...

Sources

• At Least 3 Journalists Die in Blast at Baghdad Hotel (http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/08/international/worldspecial/08CND-CAMERAMAN.html) The New York Times
• News Organizations in Baghdad Fired / Three Correspondents Died (http://www.asahi.com/international/update/0408/024.html) Asahi Shimbun (Japanese)
• Three foreign journalists killed in Baghdad (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=1503&ncid=1503&e=1&u=/afp/20030408/ts_afp/iraq_war_baghdad_media_030408165654) AFP via Yahoo news
• Spanish Government to Demand Explanation to the U.S. for Death of its Cameraman (http://www.asahi.com/international/update/0409/002.html) Asahi Shimbun (Japanese)
• In Spain, Premier Is Focus of Anger at Journalist Deaths in Iraq (http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/09/international/worldspecial/09CND-SPAIN.html) The New York Times
• Briefing at the Pentagon: 'We Choose Targets Carefully to Avoid Civilians' (http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/09/international/worldspecial/09BTEX.html) The New York Times
• Pentagon Regrets Journalist Deaths, Cites Warning (http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/politics/politics-iraq-baghdad-hotel-pentagon.html) The New York Times

The New York Times is an internationally known daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed in the United States and many other nations worldwide. ... Agence France-Presse (abbreviated AFP) is the oldest news agency in the world. ...

External links

• International Federation of Journalists (http://www.ifj.org/)
• Committee to Protect Journalists (http://www.cpj.org/)
• Reporters Without Borders (http://www.rsf.org/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=20)
• International Freedom of Expression Exchange (http://www.ifex.org/)