It is with deep sadness that media workers learned of the tragic death of Rupert Hamer, the Sunday Mirror’s defence correspondent, in Afghanistan on Sunday, and the serious injuries sustained by photographer Phil Coburn.
We extend our deepest sympathies to Rupert’s wife and children, to his colleagues at the Sunday Mirror, and we wish Phil a speedy and full recovery.
Rupert’s death reveals the risks faced by journalists trying to cover this war. Eight years into the US/UK-led occupation of Afghanistan, the country is becoming ever more dangerous for the media. It is thanks to journalists like Rupert that the British public has a picture of the disaster unfolding in that country.
We are sad, but we are also angry.
The Nato occupation of Afghanistan is propping up a deeply corrupt, bloody and unpopular regime in Kabul. British support for US imperial ambitions in Asia requires that a price be paid by soldiers, by journalists and by the civilian
populations of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
That price is too high.
We will continue to do everything possible to campaign to bring the troops home.
Media Workers Against the War
info@mwaw.net
tel 07801 789 297
