The BBC strongly condemns this abusive treatment of our journalists and calls on the Libyan government to ensure all media are able to report freely and are protected from persecution. The safety of our staff is our primary concern especially when they are working in such difficult circumstances and it is essential that journalists working for the BBC, or any media organisation, are allowed to report on the situation in Libya without fear of attack.2234: Ms Landor adds: "Despite these attacks, the BBC will continue to cover the evolving story in Libya for our audiences both inside and outside the country."
2232: Liliane Landor, Controller of Languages for BBC Global News, says: "The BBC strongly condemns this abusive treatment of our journalists and calls on the Libyan government to ensure all media are able to report freely and are protected from persecution. The safety of our staff is our primary concern especially when they are working in such difficult circumstances and it is essential that journalists working for the BBC, or any media organisation, are allowed to report on the situation in Libya without fear of attack."
2224: Feras Killani added: "When we arrived at the detention centre, one of the soldiers hit me in the back with his Kalashnikov. I dropped to the ground. They then asked me to put my hands behind my head. Then I started to hear the weapon being cocked. I thought I only had minutes to live, and that they would shoot me. I thought at that moment that if they had decided to do it, they would. I just closed my eyes and asked God to help me."
2222: BBC Arabic reporter Feras Killani said: "In one cell there were about 10 to 12 prisoners. Two of them were Egyptians, the others Libyans. The majority of them were from Zawiya. I understood from other guys that they were fighters, or that they were accused of fighting against Muammar Gaddafi's army. Four of them were in a very bad situation. There was evidence of torture on their faces and bodies. One of them said he had at least two broken ribs. I spent at least six hours helping them drink, sleep, urinate, and move from one side to another."
2214: BBC cameraman Goktay Koraltan said they saw other prisoners, mainly from Zawiya, in a much worse state than them were: "I cannot describe how bad it was. Most of them were hooded and handcuffed really tightly, all with swollen hands and broken ribs. They were in agony. They were screaming."
2209: One of the team, Chris Cobb-Smith, said: "We were lined up against the wall. I was the last in line - facing the wall. I looked and I saw a plain-clothes guy with a small sub-machine gun. He put it to everyone's neck. I saw him and he screamed at me. Then he walked up to me put the gun to my neck and pulled the trigger, twice, the bullets whisked past my ear. The soldiers just laughed."
2203: The BBC's Wyre Davies says: "Like many reporters seeking to get around Libyan government restrictions, the team from the BBC Arabic service was trying to get into the town of Zawiya, controlled earlier this week by anti-government rebels but under attack by Col Gaddafi's forces. After being detained at an army roadblock, the three men were taken to a military barracks in Tripoli where they were blindfolded, handcuffed and beaten. Reporter Feras Killani was singled out for repeated beatings and was repeatedly attacked because of his coverage of the Libyan uprising. After being released, all three team members told us that they had feared for their lives. There were at least two mock executions, with live bullets being fired past the head of one of them men. Although a senior Libyan government later apologised for their treatment at the hands of the army, the men have now left the country."
2200: Three members of a BBC News team have left Libya after being detained and mistreated by the Libyan military for 21 hours earlier this week. The team was among several reporters trying to get to the besieged town of Zawiya when they were detained.
Source: BBC News
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698
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