Reuters seeks information on Iraqi photographer's arrest

Reuters
Thursday, Sept 4, 2008

Reuters is seeking additional information on the detention of a freelance photographer working for the international news agency in Iraq.

Ibrahim Jassam Mohammed, an Iraqi who has supplied photos and video to Reuters on a freelance basis for about two years, was detained in a raid on his home in Mahmudiya by U.S. and Iraqi forces early on Tuesday morning, his family said.

They also confiscated photographic equipment, his sister Eman told Reuters.

Jassam also works for other Iraqi media.

A U.S. military spokesman declined comment on any charges Jassam may be facing, saying only that he is in U.S. custody.

"He was detained because he was evaluated as a security threat, and his case is now being evaluated," spokesman Rear Admiral Patrick Driscoll told Reuters.

Mahmudiya, some 30 km (20 miles) south of Baghdad, was once one of the most violent areas of Iraq but security there has improved in step with a sharp drop in attacks across Iraq.

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