A journalist for the Arabic service of Iran's state broadcaster was detained live on television Sunday as US troops led a renewed offensive against Shiite Muslim militiamen in the Iraqi holy city of Najaf.
"And now, reporting live from Najaf..."
"Stick 'em up!"
Mohammad Kazem, an Iraqi correspondent of Iran's Al-Alam channel, was detained at gunpoint by Iraqi police during the live interview from a Najaf rooftop. At 10 am (0600 GMT) on Sunday, Najaf police chief General Ghaleb al-Jazairi had given all journalists two hours to leave ahead of a renewed assault on militia positions in the city centre following the breakdown of truce talks the previous day. It is not the first time that Al-Alam has fallen foul of the Iraqi authorities. Officials of the US-backed interim government have repeatedly taken issue with the Iranian television's coverage, along with that of the Gulf-based satellite channels Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya. Earlier this month, Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari accused all three channels of "incitement working against the interests, security and stability of the Iraqi people" and warned: "We will no longer tolerate this in the future." |