Western and African news reports have revealed that the bullets which killed Bernama TV cameraperson Noramfaizul Mohd Nor and injured another TV3 journalist were fired by African Union peacekeepers.
"The facts are very unclear at the moment, I have spoken personally to the Somali president about the situation and offered my sincere reassurance that a full investigation is under way and that the appropriate action will be taken against any soldiers found to have acted improperly," said a New York Times article quoting AU peacekeeping force commander Maj Gen Fred Mugisha.
This fact however was not made known in Malaysian government statements on the incident, amidst the finger pointing as to who should be held accountable for the debacle which took place in Somalia last Friday.
Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak said that he has spoken to Somali government on the issue and was promised a full report of the incident by Somali President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, once the investigation into the fatal shooting was done.
The opposition, aggrieved family members and NGOs have slammed organisers of the aid mission that Noramfaizul was with - Umno Youth-backed Putera 1Malaysia Club - as the ones which should be held accountable for not ensuring proper protection and training for the embedded journalists.
The embedded journalists have told the media that they were not issued any protective gear nor given specific training on how to face the dangers of a combat zone.
Najib however said such dangers are norm for journalists, adding that even rigorous preparations, training and bullet proof vests cannot guarantee their safety.
"It's part and parcel (of the profession)... If you don't want to be a journalist, you can stay at home," he said.
Eyewitness accounts
Noramfaizul and TV3 cameraperson Aji Saregar Mazlan were travelling under hired private militia escort when their car was pursued and shot at by AU peackeepers in a pick-up truck, according eyewitness accounts.
The cameraperson was shot through the chest and died on site while TV3 journalist Aji Saregar Mazlan was wounded in the left arm.
"The African Union truck came after the car and started firing," said a woman who only identified herself with her first name of Halima, an eyewitness quoted by NYT.
According to the report, Mogadishu is filled with loosely organised militias boasting thousands of undisciplined armed troops. Already there are existing cases of peacekeepers and government soldiers accidentally killing civilians.
It is also not unusual for troops to fire shots into the air to clear jammed intersections, caused by the lack of working traffic lights.
Najib has dismissed the shooting as "stray shots" and "an unexpected occurrence" not targeted at the Malaysian journalists specifically, blaming the volatile situation in Somalia where numerous arms lie in the hands of unprofessional and untrained men in a land rife with internecine conflicts between rival militias.
source:malaysiakini
Peluru tentera AU bunuh jurukamera BernamaTV
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