Bashar Fahmi’s Wife Calls for His Return—8 Months Missing
Alhurra correspondent Bashar Fahmi’s wife, Arzu Kadumi, continued her plea for any information regarding the whereabouts and well-being of her husband, who disappeared eight months ago in Syria. Every Tuesday since Fahmi’s disappearance, Kadumi and a group of Turkish journalists gather before the Syrian Consulate in Istanbul to call for Fahmi’s release.
During the April 16th protest, Kadumi pleaded for information. “I have a lot to say but nobody hears my voice,” she said. “Everybody treats my husband as dead. If he is dead, I want his body to be brought here…I don’t believe he is dead unless I see his body. I believe he is alive…I only want to know what happened to my husband.”
Fahmi was reporting from Aleppo, Syria on Aug. 20, 2012 when he was caught in the crossfire that led to the murder of one journalist and capture of another. The Alhurra correspondent was traveling with his cameraman, Cüneyt Ünal, in Syria on Aug. 20th when a firefight erupted. Ünal was captured and released 90 days later. Japan Press’ Mika Yamamoto was killed during the deadly gun battle.
Ünal, who since his release has held a weekly protest in front of the Syrian Embassy in Ankara, added, “Bashar’s wife has been grieving…her two children ask her about their father. Those young hearts are waiting for the day their father will return. We should not abandon them; we should support this suffering wife.”
“Our heart goes out to Arzu and all of Bashar’s family during this time. We join her calls to learn any information about Bashar,” stated Brian Conniff, President of Middle East Broadcasting Networks. MBN manages and operates Alhurra Television. “Bashar is a brave and dedicated journalist; he entered Syria to tell the story of the Syrian people. If he is being held, we demand his immediate release.”
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) calls Syria the most dangerous play in the world for journalists in 2012. The CPJ states that at least 21 local and international journalists were abducted in 2012 by various sides of the conflict.