Sahar al-Haideri, 1962-2007

Sahar Hussein al-Haideri, 45, a top Iraqi reporter working in the perilous Mosul region, who fearlessly wrote about efforts by extremist forces to take control of the city and foment sectarian conflict, was murdered outside her home on June 7.

Haideri reported for a Mosul newspaper, the Voices of Iraq news agency, and the Institute for War & Peace Reporting, IWPR, where she had participated in numerous training and exchange programmes over the past three years.

Her most recent story was a moving feature on the stoning to death of a young Yezidi girl who had converted to Islam after falling in love with a Muslim boy. See "Honour Killing” Sparks Fears of New Iraqi Conflict.

Haideri had long been concerned about her security, and for the past year had contributed reports to IWPR under a pseudonym. Six months ago, her husband and four children moved to Damascus, and she had recently relocated to Syria herself.

She was on a brief visit back to her home in Mosul. Several individuals confronted her as she left her house on June 7 and shot her dead.

Earlier this week, Zakia Zaki, 35, a prominent Afghan woman journalist, and Sanga Amach, a 22-year-old television news presenter, were murdered in separate incidents in Kabul.

“Women journalists have demonstrated particular tenacity and bravery in Afghanistan, Iraq, Uzbekistan and other Islamic countries, reporting on the human costs of conflict and the efforts of mostly male-dominated power structures to undermine democracy,” said Anthony Borden, executive director of IWPR, an international not-for-profit organisation which supports local journalists in conflict areas and maintains extensive programming in Iraq.

“Women are vital agents of democratic change in these societies, and the recent tragic killings demonstrate the depth and violence of opposition to their efforts,” he said.

“Our psychological state is unbalanced because we live and think in fear and worry, and always think about our destiny and that of our family members, relatives and friends,” Haideri told the UK Press Gazette earlier this year. “But I have never thought about quitting, as journalism is my life and I really love it.”

Iraqi Crisis Reports by Sahar al-Haideri 

ICR No. 225, 29-June-07
Iraqi Sex Slaves Recount Ordeals
ICR No. 225, 29-June-07
Bleak Future for Nineweh Minorities
ICR No. 221, 14-May-07
Investigative Report: "Honour Killing” Sparks Fears Of New Iraqi Conflict
ICR No. 218, 13-Apr-07
Police Linked to Tel Afar Reprisals
ICR 216, 30-Mar-07
Mosul: Victims Pile up at City Morgue
ICR No. 215, 16-Mar-07
Home From Home in Syria
ICR No. 205, 9-Dec-06
Sunni Militants Issue Religious Edicts In Mosul
ICR No. 200, 3-Nov-06
Perils Of Policing Iraq
ICR No. 198, 13-Oct-06
Mosul Militants Attack Female Teachers
ICR No. 194, 13-Sep-06
Experts Fear A Lost Generation
ICR 143, 27-Sep-05
„Old Maids“ Missing out on Marriages
ICR 142, 20-Sep-05
Mosul Plagued by Pollution
ICR 141, 03-Sep-05
Residents Resent House Invaders
ICR 140, 06-Sep-05
Damascus Nightclubs Recruit Iraqi Girls
ICR 136, 10-Aug-05
Police Don’t Make Marriage Material
ICR 132, 12-Jul-05
Child Workers Help Their Families Get By
Insurgents Target Doctors
ICR 131, 05-Jul-05
Insurgents Impose Curbs on Women
ICR 130, 28-Jun-05
Blood Money