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July 20, 2007

AP photographer still held by US military

By Press Gazette

Associated Press photographer Bilal Hussein has been imprisoned by the US military in Iraq since April 2006 accused of being a security threat, but no charges have been filed against him, nor any public hearing permitted.

Military officials insist that under UN resolutions Hussein, an Iraqi citizen from Fallujah, has been held for “imperative reasons of security”.

AP says that an internal review of Hussein’s work has found nothing to suggest that he was in inappropriate contact with insurgents, and claims that any evidence against him should be brought to the Iraqi criminal justice system.

“We want the rule of law to prevail. He either needs to be charged or released.

Indefinite detention is not acceptable,” said AP president and chief executive Tom Curley.

Hussein joined AP in September 2004 and worked in Fallujah and Ramadi until his imprisonment. He is one of an estimated 13,000 people detained by the US military in Iraq; a further 1,000 are held elsewhere worldwide. Few are charged with a specific crime or brought before a court or tribunal.

The AP is continuing talks with the Pentagon.

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