Tareq Ayyoub
Encyclopedia
Tareq Ayyoub was an Arab
television
reporter of Palestinian
nationality, employed by Al Jazeera
, and previously by Fox News. On April 8, 2003, Ayyoub was killed when two missiles, fired from by an American ground-attack aircraft, struck the Baghdad
headquarters of the Al Jazeera Satellite Channel during the 2003 Invasion of Iraq
. The Al Jazeera station was clearly marked as a media centre, and the US military had been informed of its location in February.
in 1968, Ayyoub received his Masters in English from Calicut University. Beginning in 1998, he covered the domestic and international politics of Jordan
for the English-language Jordan Times
.
ground-attack aircraft turned toward Al-Jazeera's office and began to descend upon it. Maher Abdullah, the station's Baghdad correspondent, witnessed the A-10's attack run and gave the following description, "The plane was flying so low that those of us downstairs thought it would land – that's how close it was. We actually heard the rocket being launched. It was a direct hit – the missile actually exploded against our electrical generator and. Tareq died almost at once. Zuheir was injured."
claimed later that day that the death had been an accident, and that hostile fire had been seen originating from the Al Jazeera headquarters. There is no evidence to support this claim however, and serious doubt can be cast on the U.S. military's intentions because of two other incidents that occurred on the same day. First, the Abu Dhabi satellite station was hit by 'Army Fire' in a different section of Baghdad. Second, an American tank fired shells at Palestine Hotel
, killing journalists Taras Protsyuk
of Reuters
and Jose Couso
of the Spanish television station, Telecinco.
Two days after the attacks on Al Jazeera and Abu Dhabi, the US-Britain coalition launched an Arabic speaking news channel called Nahwa Al-Hurrieh, meaning 'Toward Freedom', in Iraq.
The event, from Al Jazeera's perspective, was captured in the documentary
Control Room.
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
reporter of Palestinian
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
nationality, employed by Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera is an independent broadcaster owned by the state of Qatar through the Qatar Media Corporation and headquartered in Doha, Qatar...
, and previously by Fox News. On April 8, 2003, Ayyoub was killed when two missiles, fired from by an American ground-attack aircraft, struck the Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
headquarters of the Al Jazeera Satellite Channel during the 2003 Invasion of Iraq
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
. The Al Jazeera station was clearly marked as a media centre, and the US military had been informed of its location in February.
Biography
Born in KuwaitKuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
in 1968, Ayyoub received his Masters in English from Calicut University. Beginning in 1998, he covered the domestic and international politics of Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
for the English-language Jordan Times
Jordan Times
The Jordan Times is an English daily newspaper in Amman, Jordan. The newspaper was established in 1975 and is owned by the Jordan Press Foundation, which also runs the Arabic-language daily Al-Rai, the Kingdom's best selling daily....
.
Death
On the morning of April 8, 2003, Ayyoub, along with his second cameraman, an Iraqi named Zuheir, was covering a pitched battle between the American and Iraqi troops from the roof of Al-Jazeera's Baghdad office. At approximately 7:45 a.m., an American A-10 WarthogA-10 Thunderbolt II
The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is an American single-seat, twin-engine, straight-wing jet aircraft developed by Fairchild-Republic in the early 1970s. The A-10 was designed for a United States Air Force requirement to provide close air support for ground forces by attacking tanks,...
ground-attack aircraft turned toward Al-Jazeera's office and began to descend upon it. Maher Abdullah, the station's Baghdad correspondent, witnessed the A-10's attack run and gave the following description, "The plane was flying so low that those of us downstairs thought it would land – that's how close it was. We actually heard the rocket being launched. It was a direct hit – the missile actually exploded against our electrical generator and. Tareq died almost at once. Zuheir was injured."
Reaction
Many of the Arab reporters for Al Jazeera saw this as an intentional attack on their personnel, but the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
claimed later that day that the death had been an accident, and that hostile fire had been seen originating from the Al Jazeera headquarters. There is no evidence to support this claim however, and serious doubt can be cast on the U.S. military's intentions because of two other incidents that occurred on the same day. First, the Abu Dhabi satellite station was hit by 'Army Fire' in a different section of Baghdad. Second, an American tank fired shells at Palestine Hotel
Palestine Hotel
The Palestine Hotel , often referred to simply as The Palestine, is an 18-story hotel in Baghdad, Iraq located on Firdos Square, across from the Sheraton Ishtar. It has long been favored by journalists and media personnel...
, killing journalists Taras Protsyuk
Taras Protsyuk
Taras Protsyuk was a Ukrainian TV cameraman working for Reuters, who was killed during the US invasion of Iraq.-Biography:Born in Ivano-Frankivsk , Protsyuk was based and lived in Warsaw since 1999 and worked as a cameraman for Reuters since 1993. During his career he covered the conflicts in...
of Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
and Jose Couso
José Couso
José Couso Permuy was a Spanish cameraman who was one of the April 8, 2003 journalist deaths by U.S. fire after a U.S. tank fired at the Palestine Hotel in Baghdad, Iraq during the 2003 Iraq invasion.-Biography:...
of the Spanish television station, Telecinco.
Two days after the attacks on Al Jazeera and Abu Dhabi, the US-Britain coalition launched an Arabic speaking news channel called Nahwa Al-Hurrieh, meaning 'Toward Freedom', in Iraq.
The event, from Al Jazeera's perspective, was captured in the documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
Control Room.
External links
- Al-Jazeera 'hit by missile' BBC News, 8 April 2003.
- Did the US murder these Journalists? Robert FiskRobert FiskRobert Fisk is an English writer and journalist from Maidstone, Kent. As Middle East correspondent of The Independent, he has primarily been based in Beirut for more than 30 years. He has published a number of books and has reported on the United States's war in Afghanistan and the same country's...
, SF Bay Guardian. April 26, 2003. - IFJ calls for re-opening of investigation into Ayyoub's death, IFEXInternational Freedom of Expression ExchangeThe International Freedom of Expression eXchange , founded in 1992, is a global network of around 90 non-governmental organisations that promotes and defends the right to freedom of expression....
, November 24, 2005. - The war on al-Jazeera Comment by Dima Tareq Tahboub, the widow of Tareq Ayyoub, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, October 4, 2003 - http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/may/29/iraq.sallybolton Iraq memorial: Tariq Ayoub