MBC Group condemns attack on Iraq offices, asks authorities to investigate

Iraqis protesting against the channel. (Social Media)
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Updated 18 May 2020
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MBC Group condemns attack on Iraq offices, asks authorities to investigate

DUBAI: The Middle East media giant, MBC Group has condemned the attacks on its Iraq offices in Baghdad on Monday.
The attacks left considerable damage to the equipment and studios, and the group asked local authorities to investigate the matter.
There has been no official statement on the perpetrotrators of the attack yet.

MBC Group strongly condemns the deliberate attack that has targeted MBC IRAQ’s studios and offices in Baghdad today, which has resulted in severe damage to studio and office property.
In terms of immediate action, MBC Group places the matter in the hands of the Iraqi authorities, trusting in its security protocols, as well as judicial process, in order to protect MBC IRAQ’s employees and the organisation, which operates in Iraq in accordance with the laws and regulations of the country. 
MBC Group hopes to receive full details of the circumstances of the attack at the earliest, and work with the authorities to hold the perpetrators accountable, as well as bring them to justice, in order to prevent similar attacks in the future.

Iraq’s Ministry of Interior released a statement on their website, which stated that they will investigate the matter and find the perpetrators.

While we affirm and guarantee the right to peaceful protest by legitimate means, we reject any outlawed aggression or behavior against the media or private and public property and it will be dealt with in accordance with the laws in force.  Ensuring the freedom and security of the media is part of the responsibility of the security forces, and the regulation of the work of the media is the responsibility of the Communication and Media Commission, which started with legal measures to address what was issued earlier from the Middle East TV network (MBC)

Dozens of demonstrators were protesting in front of the channel’s headquarters in Baghdad as they considered the channel’s portrayal of slain Iraqi paramilitary commander Abu Mahdi Al-Muhandis an “insult,” local media reported.
The Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi leader was killed alongside top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in a US drone strike in Baghdad on January 3.
MBC has aired a program – called Malek Beltawila – which discussed in one of the episodes how the wife of a famous Arab poet was killed in the 1981 attack on Iraq’s embassy in Beirut, Lebanon. The show said that Al-Muhandis was involved in the planning of the attack.


US condemns RSF drone attack on World Food Programme convoy in Sudan’s North Kordofan

Updated 42 min 12 sec ago
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US condemns RSF drone attack on World Food Programme convoy in Sudan’s North Kordofan

  • Denise Brown, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, also expresses concern over the drone attack

WASHINGTON: The US has condemned a drone attack by Rapid Support Forces on an aid convoy in Sudan’s North Kordofan state that killed one person and injured three others.

“The United States condemns the recent drone attack on a World Food Program convoy in North Kordofan transporting food to famine-stricken people which killed one and wounded many others,” US Senior Adviser for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos wrote on X.

“Destroying food intended for people in need and killing humanitarian workers is sickening,” the US envoy wrote.

“The Trump Administration has zero tolerance for this destruction of life and of U.S.-funded assistance; we demand accountability and extend our condolences to all those affected by these inexcusable events and terrible war,” he added.

The Sudan Doctors Network, on its social media accounts, said the World Food Programme (WFP) convoy was struck by RSF drones in the Allah Karim area as it headed toward displaced people in El-Obeid, the state capital.

The network described the attack as a “clear violation of international humanitarian law,” warning that it undermines efforts to deliver life-saving aid to civilians amid worsening humanitarian conditions across the country.

There was no immediate comment from the rebel group.

 

 

Denise Brown, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, in a statement also expressed concern over the drone attack which hit the aid trucks in North Kordofan.

“I am deeply concerned by a drone attack earlier today on trucks contracted by the World Food Programme (WFP) in North Kordofan, the aftermath of which I came across a few hours later, as I left the state capital, El Obeid.”

“The trucks were en route from Kosti to deliver life-saving food assistance to displaced families near El Obeid when they were struck, tragically killing at least one individual and injuring many more. The trucks caught fire, destroying food commodities intended for life-saving humanitarian response.”

Brown added that “Humanitarian personnel, assets and supplies must be protected at all times. Attacks on aid operations undermine efforts to reach people facing hunger and displacement.”

“Safe and unimpeded humanitarian access remains critical to ensure assistance reaches the most vulnerable people across Sudan.”

Since April 2023, the conflict between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary forces has killed tens of thousands, displaced 11 million and which the UN has described as one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

An alert issued by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), confirmed famine conditions in El-Fasher and Kadugli, the capital of South Kordofan, about 800 kilometers to the east.

The IPC said that 20 more areas in Sudan’s Darfur and neighboring Kordofan were at risk of famine.

Of Sudan’s 18 states, the RSF controls all five states in the western Darfur region, except for parts of North Darfur that remain under army control. The army holds most areas of the remaining 13 states across the south, north, east and center of the country, including the capital, Khartoum.

The conflict between the army and the RSF, which erupted in April 2023, has killed thousands of people and displaced millions.