Restrespo Co-Director Killed Libya
heres the CNN article
Tim Hetherington, an esteemed photojournalist and an Oscar nominee for a gritty and harrowing documentary about the Afghan war, was killed in the war-torn Libyan city of Misrata, the president of the agency that represented him said Wednesday.
Three other photographers were hurt in the incident that killed him, according to news reports. Panos Pictures, which employed Hetherington, confirmed that the photographer's family had been notified.
"We're still trying to figure out front lines or house," said CSPR agency president Cathy Saypol in reference to where he was when killed. "The only thing we know is that he was hit by an RPG with the other guys." An RPG is a rocket-propelled grenade.
A British native who was based in Brooklyn, New York, Hetherington received an Academy Award nomination this year for "Restrepo," a documentary film he co-directed with journalist Sebastian Junger. He also worked in Afghanistan two years ago with CNN's Anderson Cooper and Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
Vanity Fair magazine, where Hetherington was a contributing photographer, described him as "widely respected by his peers for his bravery and camaraderie." Its profile says he had dual U.S. and British citizenship.
"We are saddened beyond words," Saypol told Vanity Fair.
Read the Vanity Fair article
Two photographers, Chris Hondros and Guy Martin, suffered severe wounds, according to The New York Times, which had a reporter in the hospital and spoke to a colleague at a triage center. CNN is working to independently verify the information.
Hondros, an American working for the Getty photo agency, suffered a severe brain injury and was in extremely critical condition, according to the colleague, the newspaper reported. Martin, a British citizen working for the Panos photo agency, had shrapnel wounds and was undergoing vascular surgery Wednesday night, according to the same account.
The fourth journalist, Michael Christopher Brown, suffered shrapnel injuries but his life was not in danger, according to the Times.
Vanity Fair released a statement from Hetherington's family Wednesday.
"It is with great sadness we learned that our son and brother, photographer and filmmaker Tim Hetherington, was killed today in Misrata, Libya, by a rocket-propelled grenade," the statement said. "Tim will be remembered for his amazing images and his Academy Award-nominated documentary 'Restrepo.'
"Tim was in Libya to continue his ongoing multimedia project to highlight humanitarian issues during time of war and conflict. He will be forever missed."
The office of the White House press secretary expressed sadness and concern about the safety of journalists in the country. "The Libyan government and all governments across the world must take steps to protect journalists doing this vital work," it said in a statement.
Hetherington spent eight years in West Africa and had reported on social and political issues worldwide, most notably the Liberian conflict.
He gained wide fame for "Restrepo," which chronicles the deployment of a platoon of U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley, according to the film's website.
Before these casualties were reported, the CPJ had documented more than 80 attacks on the press since political unrest erupted in Libya. Its website has a running list of attacks on media people since February 16.
"They include two fatalities, a gunshot injury, 49 detentions, 11 assaults, two attacks on news facilities, the jamming of Al-Jazeera and Al-Hurra transmissions, at least four instances of obstruction, the expulsion of two international journalists, and the interruption of Internet service. At least six local journalists are missing amid speculation they are in the custody of security forces. One international journalist and two media support workers are also unaccounted for," CPJ said.
In one well-publicized incident, four New York Times journalists were abducted and freed last month. They described "beatings and abuse while in captivity."
