AUGUST 2006

Israelis renounce membership in world journalist federation
By Assaf Carmel, Haaretz, 20/07/2006
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spa...ges/ 741068.html

A group of Israeli journalists on Thursday renounced their membership in the International Federation of Journalists, after the organization's General Secretary refused to retract his condemnation of the Israel Defense Forces' bombing of the Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV station in Beirut. IFJ General Secretary Aiden White proposed coming to Israel to settle the dispute, but Israeli journalist and IFJ member Yaron Anosh told him that as long as the censure remained in effect, White would be unwelcome in Israel. The IDF attacked the Hezbollah's TV station shortly after it began its offensive in Lebanon last week. The IFJ said in a statement last weekend that the strike is "a clear demonstration that Israel has a policy of using violence to silence media it does not agree with." IFJ members in Israel demanded that the censure be lifted immediately and asked why the IFJ did not condemn Hezbollah for firing rockets at Israeli journalists. After the IFJ refused to nullify its condemnation, the six Israeli members announced their immediate resignation. "I have no intention of being a being a card-carrying member of an organization that would give a similar card to Hezbollah member, whether he is firing Katyusha or serving as the group's propaganda man at its TV station," Anosh said. "A terrorist is not a journalist, and if an international organization prefers to have terrorists as members ? then count us out." The IFJ on has also called on the IDF to explain an incident Wednesday in which troops opened fire on an Al-Jazeera TV news crew, injuring a technician. "First reports suggest that here was an unarmed media crew suddenly subject to an unprovoked attack by Israeli soldiers," IFJ General Secretary Aidan White said in a statement. "If true, it is an astonishing and terrifying example of targeting and the Israeli authorities must give an explanation as to how this happened."

TV war correspondents rescued from angry mob by Hizbullah

Lee Glendinning
Friday July 21, 2006
The Guardian

Two British journalists were recovering in Beirut last night after being attacked by a mob which surrounded their car for almost an hour, smashing windows and trying to force them out.

The journalists from GMTV, and their Lebanese interpreter and driver were rescued when two men thought to be Hizbullah officials pushed through the crowd, grabbed them and drove them to a safe house, television colleagues said.

GMTV's roaming correspondent Richard Gaisford and producer Dave Mason were driving back to their hotel after reporting in western Beirut when a crowd began to follow them. "Richard said he had been surrounded in the car with the windows smashed and the keys taken," a television colleague said. Mr Gaisford had said he had feared for his life.

The Hizbullah officials took them to a safe house where they were interrogated before the police were called.

They received a personal apology from the Lebanese prime minister, Fouad Siniora, which was interrupted when a phone call came through from Kofi Annan.