NYT reporter freed in raid; Afghan translator dies

[Red Fox]

Steve, it seems to me that the British press has a better working relationship with the British military. They certainly are not Pravda or TASS, but they seem to at least respect those that serve in their military. There is the instance in the Falkland War (if my memory is correct) where a British reporter reported on a military operation which was about to occur, thus tipping Argentina. The local commander, Lt Col H. Jones was livid and wanted the reporter arrested. Col. Jones was soon killed during the battle for Goose Green. I don't know what happened to the reporter but apparently his report may have led to Col. Jones' death. This seems to be an anomaly with the British press.

However, I believe that type of thing happens often in the US. Geraldo Rivera revealed information on TV during a broadcast on Fox in 2003 while in Iraq and I know Dan Rather was believed (by military) to have made up stories while a correspondent in Vietnam. I could give more instances if I spent time researching. I believe there are many in the US press who have a general antipathy for the US military. I get the impression that some think we are hayseeds who can't do anything else in life. I believe a lot of this started in Vietnam, where many in the press didn't just try to report the facts, but tried to end the war by undermining the US military. Its not just our press, some of our politicians do it also.

[Steve Davies]

RF

I didn't know that story behind 'H's' death - the controversy deepens.

Our media is certainly as fickle as any other, but it does indeed seem that they manage on the whole to keep their noses a little cleaner than those in the US. It's not perfect, however, and in his recent book The Junior Officers' Reading Club, Hennessey gives the embeds and British media as a whole a bit of a shoeing for trying to fight the troop's corner on lack of equipment and for trying to embellish the heroics of soldiers killed in combat.

[ClearedHot]

KABUL (AP) — Afghan journalists blamed a kidnapped colleague's death on what they called a reckless rescue operation by British forces and said Thursday that foreign troops have a "double standard" for Western and Afghan lives.

The death of Afghan translator and reporter Sultan Munadi during a raid that freed a British-Irish journalist for The New York Times could further fuel anger among some Afghans over the conduct of foreign troops. That ire threatens to weaken support for the fight against a resurgent Taliban.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai condemned the killing as did his main challenger in the country's disputed presidential election, former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah.

The Afghan journalists' accusations came as British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's office said that the rescue operation Wednesday in the northern province of Kunduz was an attempt to recover both Munadi and reporter Stephen Farrell and that it was authorized as the "best chance of protecting life."

Munadi, 34, died in a hail of gunfire during the commando raid — though it was unclear if the bullets came from British troops or his Taliban captors. Farrell was rescued unhurt. John Harrison, 29, from the British Parachute Regiment was also killed in the operation to free the pair, who were kidnapped Saturday.

The newly formed Media Club of Afghanistan — set up by Afghan reporters who work with international news outlets — condemned the Taliban, who grabbed the two. But the journalists also said in a statement they hold NATO-led forces responsible for launching a military operation without exhausting nonviolent channels. They also criticized British commandos for leaving Munadi's body behind while retrieving their own slain comrade.

"It shows a double standard between a foreign life and an Afghan life," said Fazul Rahim, an Afghan producer for CBS News.

Munadi's family privately arranged to retrieve the body and buried him in the capital late Wednesday.

On Thursday, more than 50 Afghan reporters, wearing cameras and carrying notebooks, laid flowers at Munadi's grave.

At his family's house, women wept in one room and men in another. Munadi's father held a scarf to his face as he cried. Munadi's mother and wife sat against a wall, red-eyed. They were surrounded by women in headscarfs, who were crying, wailing and singing.

The outrage among Afghan reporters adds to criticism of foreign forces in Afghanistan, even as the NATO command has taken steps to limit the use of airstrikes to avoid civilian deaths that could provide recruiting fodder to the Taliban. The force is focused on winning broader public support, nearly eight years after the U.S.-led invasion that ousted the Taliban's hard-line regime for sheltering al-Qaida leaders.

NATO is also investigating reports that civilians were among the 70 people who local officials say died last week when German troops called in U.S. jets to bomb two hijacked fuel tankers in Kunduz. Farrell and Munadi were looking into those reports when they were abducted.

Police had warned reporters against traveling to the village, and other Western journalists, including some from the AP, went there in the company of NATO forces. Brig. Gordon Messenger, a former British commander of NATO troops in Afghanistan, said journalists in war zones who operate outside of military units are a complication. "My strong preference is for the journalist to be embedded with a unit," he said.

Col. Wayne Shanks, a U.S. and NATO spokesman, called deaths during the raid "tragic" but said, "I don't think that during the middle of a firefight anyone can blame someone for what they did or did not do."

A British defense official, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive details of the mission, insisted Munadi wasn't treated any differently from Farrell.

"This was not an operation to save one individual," the official said.

The journalists' organization, however, said few seem to care as much about the lives of kidnapped Afghans as high-profile foreigners.

In 2007, Taliban militants kidnapped an Italian journalist, his Afghan translator and their driver in southern Helmand province. The Italian was released two weeks later in exchange for five Taliban prisoners, while both Afghans were killed.

It was unclear Thursday whether Munadi, the father of two young sons, was killed by British or militant gunfire. His body was buried before it was examined to determine the source of the bullets.

In his account of the four days in captivity and the rescue, Farrell wrote in the New York Times that during the chaotic operation, he saw Munadi get hit and fall down with his hands raised, shouting, "Journalist! Journalist!" to someone Farrell could not see.

Farrell dived into a ditch and when he emerged, he saw Munadi's body lying where it had fallen. He wrote that the British commandos rushed him from the scene.

"They told me they had his picture and would look for him, then dragged me away" toward a waiting helicopter, he wrote.

Brown's office said the British leader will contact Munadi's family to offer his condolences.

___

Associated Press writers Heidi Vogt and Amir Shah in Kabul and Danica Kirka and Meera Selva in London contributed to this report.

Edited September 11, 2009 by ClearedHot

[ClearedHot]

British Express Anger Over Deaths in Rescue of New York Times Reporter Who Ignored Repeated Warnings Not to Go Into Taliban Stronghold

New York Times reporter and blogger Stephen Farrell is being criticized in the wake of his rescue by British commandos, a rescue that claimed the lives of a woman, child, and a British soldier. Commanders are expressing anger that Farrell not only ignored repeated warnings not to go to the site in hostile territory, but was specifically told by a local man that the Taliban was coming.

The soldier was a member of the 1st Battalion, The Parachute Regiment, Special Forces Support Group, which did a magnificent job in the rescue of Farrell, 46, and his interpreter, Sultan Munadi, 34. Farrell was investigating the scene of a US air strike on fuel tankers which the Taliban alleged was a massacre of innocent civilians. Once there, an elderly man ran up to warn him to flee because of the approaching Taliban.

Both police and intelligence officers repeatedly told Farrell that it was too dangerous to go to the site. This is the second time that Farrell has been taken hostage. The herefirst time was in Iraq five years ago.

A British officer was understandably upset with the loss of this true hero: “When you look at the number of warnings this person had it makes you really wonder whether he was worth rescuing, whether it was worth the cost of a soldier’s life. In the future special forces might think twice in a similar situation.” Another officer joined in: “This reporter went to this area against the advice of the Afghan police. So thanks very much Stephen Farrell, your irresponsible act has led to the death of one of our boys.”

It is a tough call for journalists who cannot always comply with restrictions by local police or the military — which may not want independent review of such areas. However, it is also a lesson for reporters that, if you are captured, it is possible that others may pay the price for a risky journalistic mission. Frankly, as a stronghold of the Taliban, this area seemed far too risky for such a venture, particularly given the fanaticism of Taliban.

[Steve Davies]

New York Times reporter and blogger Stephen Farrell is being criticized in the wake of his rescue by British commandos, a rescue that claimed the lives of a woman, child, and a British soldier. Commanders are expressing anger that Farrell not only ignored repeated warnings not to go to the site in hostile territory, but was specifically told by a local man that the Taliban was coming.

That tallies with what posters on the other forum - men who met him in Iraq - have said about him being a dangerous egotist.

It will also prompt the NYT's 'not our fault, blame the British' defence to become even louder.