Aljazeera rejects US accusations

[Dreamer128]

Aljazeera has rejected the US military's comments against its coverage of the latest events in Iraq, and considered the accusations as a threat to the media.


US Army chief spokesman, Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, on Monday called Aljazeera, and other Arab media outlets the "anti-coalition media" and advised viewers to "change the channel".

Meanwhile, General John Abizaid, the head of US Central Command, singled out Aljazeera as portraying US military action "as purposely targeting civilians, and we absolutely do not do that, and I think everybody knows that."

"They have not been truthful in their reporting. Haven't been accurate," said Abizaid.

Aljazeera denied the allegations. "Aljazeera rejects these accusations and consider them a threat to the right and the mission of the media outlets to cover the reality of what is happening in Iraq during this tough and complicated field circumstances," said Aljazeera in a statement on Tuesday.

"This is an unjustified pressure against the freedom of the press," added the statement.

Editorial policy

Aljazeera has also pointed out that it will continue to cover the events in Iraq and present all the points of view on Iraq "objectively, independently and professionally".

Aljazeera reiterated its standing with its editorial policy "that is commited to portraying different opinions and presenting the viewers with a full and real picture."

US Marines, responding to the murder of four American guards in Falluja on 31 March, attacked resistance fighters in the town last week.

As fighting intensified, US authorities have stepped up a separate battle for public opinion, tightly controlling the flow of information to journalists whose ability to move freely in Iraq has been limited by increasing danger.

Doctors in Falluja say more than 700 people have died in the fighting. The US military says they are mainly "rebels", but Aljazeera, with teams inside the town, insists a large number of women and children are among the dead.

(Source: Aljazeera)

[Timber Loftis]

Aljazeera has also pointed out that it will continue to cover the events in Iraq and present all the points of view on Iraq "objectively, independently and professionally".

[img]graemlins/biglaugh.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/biglaugh.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/biglaugh.gif[/img]

NY Times:
August 7, 2004
Iraq Shuts Al Jazeera Baghdad Office for a Month
By REUTERS

Filed at 4:07 p.m. ET

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's interim government ordered Qatar-based Al Jazeera satellite television network to close its Baghdad office for one month Saturday, a move criticized as unjustifiable by the channel.

Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, confirming the decision at a news conference, said a commission had been monitoring Al Jazeera for the past four weeks to see whether it was inciting violence and hatred, and that the decision had been taken ``to protect the people of Iraq.''

``It's regrettable and we believe it's not justifiable,'' Al Jazeera spokesman Jihad Ballout said. ``This latest decision runs contrary to all the promises made by Iraqi authorities concerning freedom of expression and freedom of the press.''

Iraqi police officers went to the station's Baghdad office late Saturday and argued with Jazeera staff before locking the newsroom.

Iraqi Interior Minister Falah al-Naqib said this week that Arabic satellite channels were encouraging kidnappings by showing images of hostages threatened with execution.

Another government official at the press conference said the station had ``encouraged criminals and gangsters'' in Iraq.

Al Jazeera's Ballout denied the charge.

``We are not a political organization that is for or against anybody. We display what happens on the ground as objectively as possible and in a balanced way,'' he said.

Ballout said the television would continue to cover events in Iraq despite the closure. ``I'm not going to say it will be easy, but again a creative journalist will try to get a comprehensive and balanced story out there,'' he said.

In recent weeks several senior Iraqi officials have criticized Jazeera's coverage of the country.

Earlier this week, the station reported a videotaped statement from a militant group linked to al Qaeda ally Abu Musab al-Zarqawi saying it had released two Turkish drivers because their company agreed to stop working in Iraq.

Scores of hostages from two dozen countries have been seized in the past four months. Most have been freed but at least 10 have been killed, and at least 20 are still being held in Iraq.

Last month, Al Jazeera, accused by the United States of graphic and anti-American conflict coverage, unveiled a code of ethics it said would ensure balanced and sensitive reporting.

Jazeera won over millions of Arab viewers before and during the U.S.-led war on Afghanistan in 2001 after airing exclusive footage of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden following the September 11, 2001, attacks on U.S. cities.
_____________________________________
Color commentary: al jazeera should be considered an enemy target and treated accordingly, however that may be. Personal opinion.

[ 08-08-2004, 12:38 PM: Message edited by: Timber Loftis ]

[Dreamer128]

I think Al Jazeera is probably the most objective thing you'll find in the Middle East I occasionally go to their site to read the news, and never found them to be particulary biased. [img]smile.gif[/img]

[ 08-08-2004, 01:16 PM: Message edited by: Dreamer128 ]

[Illumina Drathiran'ar]

I feel bad for people who believe bised tripe like that. Now be quiet, because Fox News is back on.