Impossible

The official account of the killing of two Al-Arabiya journalists leaves a lot to be desired, writes Ramsey Al-Rikabi in Baghdad

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Journalists working in any combat zone are at danger. During the war, journalists regularly found themselves caught between coalition troops and the remnants of the Iraqi army. One year on, journalists are still vulnerable, either from soldiers making split-second decisions on self- defence or squads of insurgent assassins.

As questions over the circumstances of the deaths of two Arab journalists remain unanswered, the Committee to Protect Journalists has requested that the contents of a military investigation into the deaths of the journalists be made public.

On the night of 18 March, an Al-Arabiya news team arrived at the sight of a rocket attack on the Al-Hayat Hotel in Baghdad. When they left, two of their colleagues were dead, both shot in the head by American troops. The death of the two journalists, correspondent Ali Khateeb and cameraman Ali Abdel-Aziz, prompted a walkout by at least 20 Arab journalists during a press conference here given by Colin Powell, the US secretary of state.

Two Al-Arabiya employees, an engineer who witnessed the shooting and the driver of the car that was shot, tell a story that casts doubt on the official military version. The driver, Ahmed "Abu Mariam" Abdel-Amir, and an Al- Arabiya technician who was driving the satellite transmission truck that night, Abdel-Hafedh, spoke to Al- Ahram Weekly about what happened.

The Al-Hayat Hotel, a dark brown multi-storied building with small windows inset at angles, sits in the Karrada district of Baghdad. The street has a few other hotels and restaurants, an office furniture store and the German Embassy, a commonly used landmark. It is not an area of Baghdad that has been overrun with journalists and contractors. The street, locally known as Al-Hayat Street, is a perfectly straight four-lane road, split down the middle by a low median. After the Al-Hayat Hotel was hit, coalition troops cordoned off the street in front of the hotel. According to Abdel-Amir and Hafedh, they parked their cars approximately 150 metres away and on the opposite side of the street from the Al-Hayat. Abdel-Aziz and Khateeb were riding in a grey Kia Sportage SUV. The two journalists, along with Hafedh, the engineer, approached the American soldiers manning the roadblock. Hafedh recalls a tank and a Hummer -- a US military super-jeep -- parked diagonally, blocking their side of the street. After being denied permission to film the scene or get any closer to the hotel, they returned to their vehicles. During the brief walk back, Hafedh recalls, power in the neighbourhood went out. According to Hafedh, all three were wearing press tags and the troops were aware that they were journalists. At this point, they decided to leave.

Before turning his car around, with Khateeb and Abdel- Aziz inside, Abdel-Amir says he saw a car approaching in his rear-view mirror. No one could have known that the car, a white Volvo driven by an elderly Swiss-Iraqi, would inexplicably and lethally not stop at the roadblock. Right after the white Volvo passed, Abdel-Aziz turned his car around, pulling left across two traffic lanes, crossing the low median and then heading back down the other side of the street. Soldiers began firing at the white Volvo after it ran through a small metal sign placed in front of the roadblock. Military officials say the Volvo pushed the Humvee back five metres. The driver was most likely dead before he hit the Hummer. The whole incident lasted a few seconds, but when it was over the passengers in Abdel- Amir's car were dead.

Abdel-Amir says he could hear the gunfire after he turned around. "[Khateeb] was yelling 'Abu Mariam, go, go. Go faster'," recalls Abdel-Amir. Seconds later, Khateeb, who was sitting in the front seat, slumped left, resting on Abdel-Amir's shoulder. "I called to Abdel-Aziz to help. But when I turned around I saw that he was shot as well." Abdel-Aziz was sitting directly behind Khateeb. As their car reached the end of the street, approximately 100 metres from where they turned around, Abdel-Amir recalls that he could still hear gunfire.

"I was terrified. I was shouting. I was shouting into my cell phone. I was hysterical," Abdel-Amir says. "The people from our office on the phone asked me, 'Where are you?' 'I don't know,' I said. 'Where are you going?' 'I don't know'."

Hafedh, the satellite technician, was preparing to leave when the white Volvo passed and then the shooting began. As Abdel-Amir crossed the median to turn around, Hafedh put the satellite truck in reverse before turning to follow Abdel-Amir's Kia. Before he could turn, the shooting started. Confused by the sudden action, Hafedh continued to back up, running into a parked BMW directly behind him.

"After I crashed, I saw soldiers on the other side of the street shooting in the direction of Abu Mariam. One soldier I saw continued firing. I couldn't imagine that they were shooting at Abu Mariam," says Hafedh. "I could see the muzzle flashes. It was very clear. It was clear they were shooting, but not at the Volvo." Hafedh recalls that there was "lots of shooting" and claims shots were still being fired after he eventually turned around and left the area. He caught up to Abdel-Amir, who had taken a right at the end of the street and was driving slow and swerving. "He was screaming 'We got shot, we got shot'."

American military spokesmen initially were sceptical that soldiers had anything to do with the deaths, claiming that Abu Mariam's car -- a grey Kia Sportage SUV -- was not seen by any officers in the area. Ten days later, in a brief press release, the coalition military expressed "regret" at the "accidental shooting" of the two journalists and explained that "due to the location of the Kia, and the range and orientation of the weapons used to stop the Volvo, it is likely that the Kia was unintentionally struck by four to six rounds aimed at the Volvo." Captain Aaron Hatok, the public affairs officer for the US Army's Third Armored Division, which the soldiers involved in the incident are a part of, declined to comment about the discrepancies and the investigation remains classified.

Either account -- that bullets shot at the white Volvo accidentally killed two people in a separate car, or that one soldier intentionally shot at the Kia -- seem improbable. To hit a car over 100 metres away on the other side of the street while aiming at a car right in front of you would be difficult to write off as an accident. But to intentionally shoot two people in the head in a moving car over 100 metres away in the dark near impossible.

Dr Bashir Alaa at the Baghdad Central Morgue, who examined Ali Khateeb's body, says four bullet fragments hit Khateeb in the lower-left part of the back of his head. Abdel-Aziz was also killed by bullet fragments, he said. "This is not the first case of bullets shot by Americans that have split," Dr Bashir says. "We've seen two previous cases of people killed by split bullets fired from the Americans." Dr Bashir claims that the bullets might have split when they went through the back windshield, but the only way to know for sure would be to conduct extensive experiments.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, a New York- based organisation, has filed a request in the United States under the Freedom of Information Act to release the findings of the Army's investigation. "While we welcome the military's swift response, its investigation must be made public so it can be determined whether the inquiry was conducted fairly and comprehensively," CPJ Executive Director Ann Cooper said in a statement released Monday. "We remain troubled by the deaths of our colleagues and seek a fuller explanation of why these journalists were shot, as well as what officials are doing to prevent future incidents." Six journalists have died in Iraq as a result of US gunfire, the CPJ statement said.

At the Al-Arabiya offices in Baghdad, pictures of Khateeb and Abdel-Aziz have been hung in almost every room. The pictures of the two journalists, both in their 30s, each with short hair and moustaches, are labelled with the words "brave martyr". A black ribbon has been draped over Khateeb's desk, crossing over a bouquet of flowers.

Saad Al-Hasani, Baghdad bureau chief of the Middle East Broadcasting Company, which is owned by the same company as Al-Arabiya, considers the killings "unjustified and unjustifiable". Al-Hasani was one block away when the two were killed. "This is the first time the Americans have taken responsibility, which was a proper action to take," Al- Hasani said. But, he added, "I am not easily deceived by sweet words. I won't pardon the Americans at all."

Al-Arabiya plans to sue the individual soldiers in the unit involved in the incident. Currently, under occupation authority law, US forces enjoy immunity from prosecution, but not military disciplinary action. However, official ranks are closing. "It was established that those soldiers acted properly within their rules for the use of force and rules of engagement. And as a result, at this point the investigation has determined that no further action need be taken against those soldiers," said Brigadier General Kimmet, deputy director of coalition operations.