17-Feb-2010
Unidentified gunmen kidnapped a radio journalist on Wednesday morning in downtown Kirkuk.

Al-Ahd radio station director, Mr. Abid Abu Zahra, told the Journalistic Freedoms Observatory that an Unidentified gunmen kidnapped our correspondent, Husam Dawood Al-Uqabi, this morning in the victory district in the city of Kirkuk and took him to an unknown destination.
Abu Zahra also said that four gunmen in a red car were behind the kidnapping.

Salam Al-Uqabi, the elder brother of Husam said that his brother, contacted the family few minutes after he left home, heading to his work, and told them that he was abducted by four masked men and put him inside their car’s trunk.

Husam Dawood Al-Uqabi is a 22 years old and he is in the beginning of his career in the media field, working with the (Al-Ahd) radio station as a radio correspondent since last year.

The Journalistic Freedoms Observatory demands the security authorities and the military in Kirkuk for immediate action to secure the release of Al-Uqabi and his safety. And calls on parties and political forces not to involve journalists in the midst of political conflicts and to understand the nature of journalism away from the debates.