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8/19/2004 02:53:00 AM | Justin

PM Allawi denies free press in Iraq

Ten uniformed policemen walked into the hotel and demanded that the al-Arabiya,
Reuters and AP correspondents go with them. Journalists told them
they were not there, but the policemen found and arrested Ahmed al-Salahih, the
al-Arabiya correspondent, who the day before had been given a special exemption
from the earlier eviction orders. A uniformed lieutenant then told
the assembled journalists and hotel staff: "We are going to open fire on this
hotel. I'm going to smash it all, kill you all, and I'm going to put four
snipers to target anybody who goes out of the hotel. You have brought it upon
yourselves". (link: The Australian)

No, the above paragraph is not describing Saddam's evil regime, it's describing the new PM Allawi's regime, although their tactics are growing increasingly similar. TNR recently published a piece analyzing it's coverage before the Iraq war, concluding that their strategic case for war has collapsed, but the moral case remains strong. Doesn't this assume that the new Iraqi strongman will exercise power with greater morality than his predecessor?

Granted, the situation in Najaf may require the use of overwhelming military force, but it appears that Allawi, or someone else in his government, is trying to mount a campaign to eliminate all media coverage in Najaf, which could very well pave the way for the kind of unchecked brutality of which we had assumed only Saddam was capable.

Many of our comment-happy neo-con observers have defended U.S. and Iraqi suppression of free press on the grounds that it incites terrorism, but it may be hard for them to fit Reuters and the AP under the terrorist mantal.

Update: I was a bit doubtful of this story, so I found a second source. The Guardian gives more details: (link) Maybe this is all moot now that a truce appears to be developing, but then again, each time they cross the line, it becomes easier for them to cross it again.



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