World Must Condemn Killing of Press TV Reporter in Syria

Press TV Syrian correspondent Maya Naser was assassinated in Damascus. He was covering an attack on a government building when he was hit by snipers., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.

World must condemn killing of Press TV reporter in Syria: Ahmadinejad

Thu Sep 27, 2012 7:32AM GMT
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I do hope that such an event will not be repeated anywhere in the world and I do hope that all, without paying attention to the personal preferences, will come to condemn such events.”

Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called on the international community to condemn the assassination of a Press TV correspondent in Syria.

“I do hope that such an event will not be repeated anywhere in the world and I do hope that all, without paying attention to the personal preferences, will come to condemn such events,” President Ahmadinejad said in a press conference following his speech at the 67th session of the UN General Assembly in New York on Wednesday.

Insurgents in the Syrian capital of Damascus attacked Press TV staff, killing the Iranian English-language news network’s correspondent, Maya Naser, and injuring Press TV and Al-Alam Damascus Bureau Chief Hosein Mortada, on Wednesday.

Naser was shot and killed by a sniper, while Mortada, a Lebanese national, was shot and wounded in the back.

The two were covering twin bomb blasts, which targeted the military command building in the Syrian capital and killed at least four Syrian security forces.

The Iranian president expressed his sincere condolences over the death of the Press TV correspondent and called on everyone to respect the sanctity of reporters.

He said that reporting is a very important tool which sheds light on realities and informs the international community about events that happen in faraway places.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast on Wednesday strongly condemned the latest terrorist attacks in Syria, which led to Naser's death.

“The mass media are working in the most difficult circumstances to reflect the realities and truth to the public opinion, and recourse to violence and terrorism can never prevent Syria’s realities from being revealed to people,” he said.

Born on July 30, 1979 in Syria, Maya Naser had studied political science, was fluent in Arabic and English and had worked in many countries including the US, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt and Bahrain.

Syria has been the scene of deadly unrest since mid-March, 2011 and many people, including large numbers of army and security personnel, have been killed in the violence.

The Syrian government says that the chaos is being orchestrated from outside the country, and there are reports that a large number of the insurgents are foreign nationals.