Iraqi court sentences two to death for 2013 killing of journalists in Mosul

DHI QAR — An Iraqi court has sentenced two individuals to death for their involvement in the 2013 killing of two journalists from Al Sharqiya TV in Mosul. The Criminal Court of Dhi Qar issued the sentences on Tuesday, convicting the men under Article 4 of Iraq’s Anti-Terrorism Law following a thorough investigation.

In October 2013, reporter Mohammed Karim Al-Badrani and cameraman Mohammed Ghanem were shot and killed by gunmen while filming a report in Mosul’s old city. The attack shocked Iraq’s press community and raised serious concerns about the safety of journalists working in conflict zones.

A security source told 964media, “The Dhi Qar Criminal Court has sentenced two terrorists to death after finding them guilty of killing the Sharqiya TV crew in Mosul in 2013.”

Sharqiya TV, known for its critical reporting, condemned the killings at the time, stating, “The forces of evil have assassinated our reporter Mohammed Karim Al-Badrani and cameraman Mohammed Ghanem.” The journalists were working on a story about the rise in begging in Mosul ahead of the Eid al-Adha holiday when they were targeted.

Eyewitnesses described a harrowing scene. “The gunmen shot them in the head, and they died instantly,” a senior Sharqiya TV correspondent told AFP, adding that the bodies remained in the street for nearly half an hour. Al-Badrani, who was 28 at the time and had recently joined the channel, had received threats over his coverage of security operations in Mosul. “But they didn’t take the threats seriously,” the correspondent added.

Ayman Al-Nadhim, a Sharqiya TV journalist in Nineveh, told the Journalistic Freedoms Observatory that the attack appeared premeditated. “They were targeted while covering a report on increased begging during a busy time in the market,” Al-Nadhim said. He recounted how the gunmen attacked the journalists in broad daylight, using automatic weapons to kill them in front of shoppers in Mosul’s main market.

Iraq remains one of the most dangerous places in the world for journalists. Since the U.S. invasion in 2003, at least 233 journalists have been killed, the majority of whom were Iraqi nationals, making Iraq one of the deadliest countries for media workers. Between 2003 and 2011, over 150 journalists and 54 media support workers were killed, according to various reports.