No Result
View All Result
Monday, June 5, 2023
26 °c
Tripoli
24 ° Tue
22 ° Wed
22 ° Thu
24 ° Fri
  • Advertising
  • Contact
LibyaHerald
 
  • Home
  • Libya
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Magazine
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Register
SUBSCRIBE
  • Home
  • Libya
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Magazine
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Register
No Result
View All Result
LibyaHerald
No Result
View All Result
Home Libya

British journalist deported

byMichel Cousins
July 26, 2012
Reading Time: 3 mins read
A A
12
SHARES
53
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
By George Grant.

Tripoli, 24 July:

A British journalist has been deported from Libya for carrying out unauthorised filming at a military base . . .[restrict]on the outskirts of Tripoli.

Sharon Ward, a freelance broadcaster who has worked for the BBC, was arrested at the Janzour Naval Academy on Thursday afternoon, where she had been documenting the plight of 2,000 refugees currently housed at the facility.

“I had obtained permission to film from the leader of the refugees there”, New Zealand-born Ward told the Libya Herald shortly before her deportation this afternoon. “From day one I believed that would be sufficient”.

What the journalist had failed to do, however, was inform the authorities at Janzour, although she was granted access to the base and allowed to film for four hours before anybody thought to stop her.

Just nine months on from the demise of Qaddafi’s 42-year dictatorship, official sensitives over infractions by foreign journalists in Libya remain high.

Two weeks ago, a Danish journalist was deported for attempting to vault the wall of the conference centre being used to announce Libya’s general election results, wearing nothing more than a T-shirt, shorts and trainers, whilst carrying no identification of any kind.

Ward’s situation was further exacerbated by the fact that the refugees on the base were from Tawergha, a former pro-Qaddafi stronghold whose fate remains amongst the bitterest legacies of last year’s revolution.

During the conflict, Tawerghans were accused of committing horrendous crimes for the Qaddafi regime against the nearby city of Misrata, with instances of rape, looting and murder reported on a widespread scale. Subsequently, Misratans exacted collective punishment, forcing almost all of the 30,000 occupants of Tawergha to flee.  It is now a ghost town. Many thousands are now being held in camps across Libya, including at Janzour.

Having been detained for several hours, first at the camp and then at a Supreme Security Committee facility in Fornaj, Tripoli, Ward was released into the care of the British Embassy at around 1 a.m. on Friday morning to await further questioning.

What then transpired was a mixture of the tragic and the absurd, starting with a hapless attempt by the journalist to conceal the tapes recorded in Janzour upon being returned to her hotel room.

“I put them in the rubbish bin thinking that would be the safest place for them” she said. “I thought that if anyone came searching my room, they wouldn’t look there.”

Ward had not counted on the hotel maid, however, who disposed of the tapes following her return to custody for further interrogation on Saturday.

The situation became more serious after Ward told her captors the name of the refugee who had authorised her to film in Janzour, leading to his arrest and interrogation on Sunday afternoon.

“I don’t know if he is still being held or if he has been released”, the journalist said. “As soon as I return to London I want to find out what’s happened to him. I’m worried for his safety.”

Ward herself spent both Saturday and Sunday in detention, before being handed over to the British Embassy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday afternoon.

In a statement released shortly after 4 p.m. this afternoon an Embassy spokeswoman said: “Sharon Ward voluntarily left Libya today and the British embassy would like to thank the Libyan authorities for their assistance in resolving Sharon’s case”.

It is believed that British officials were very unhappy at the journalist’s actions on the basis that they compromised both her own safety and that of Tawerghan refugees.

It is understood that British Airways agreed to changed Ward’s return ticket to a single at no extra cost.

[/restrict]

 

RELATED POSTS

Libyan-Tunisia agricultural, marine and food sector B2B meetings – Tunis 19 to 20 June

Tripoli Chamber leading business delegation to Saudi on 22 August

Share5Tweet3Share1

Related Posts

AMLY School is offering an innovative approach to learning in Libya
Libya

AMLY School is offering an innovative approach to learning in Libya

June 5, 2023
Attorney General orders arrests at Jumhouria bank branch for embezzlement
Libya

Members of illegal organizations given imprisonment and death sentences by Misrata Criminal Court

May 30, 2023
State recognised militia and Libyan Army clash in central Tripoli
Libya

State recognised militia and Libyan Army clash in central Tripoli

May 29, 2023
FDCC destroys non-conforming shipments of medicines, calls on suppliers to respect Libyan health standards
Libya

FDCC destroys non-conforming shipments of medicines, calls on suppliers to respect Libyan health standards

May 29, 2023
GNU to take oath at Benghazi HoR session and budget to be approved at Tripoli session: GNU
Libya

Tripoli Libyan government conducts drone strikes against criminal hideouts in western coast

May 25, 2023
AmCham Libya Networking Breakfast
Libya

US Embassy in Tripoli announces easing of visa protocol: One-year multiple entry visas now replace three-month single-entry visas

May 24, 2023
Next Post

The 2012 London Olympic Games: A look at the Libyan athletes

National Congress to meet on 8 August: NTC

 

Advertise on LibyaHerald

Reach thousands of our site visitors daily

240 x 400px

Advertise Here
ADVERTISEMENT

Top Stories

  • State recognised militia and Libyan Army clash in central Tripoli

    State recognised militia and Libyan Army clash in central Tripoli

    249 shares
    Share 100 Tweet 62
  • HB Group opens Apple authorised I-Shop reseller in Tripoli’s Siyahia

    72 shares
    Share 29 Tweet 18
  • Members of illegal organizations given imprisonment and death sentences by Misrata Criminal Court

    58 shares
    Share 23 Tweet 15
  • Sirte Oil Company’s smart fields give it higher efficiency, more accurate real-time data for timely decisions

    52 shares
    Share 21 Tweet 13
  • AMLY School is offering an innovative approach to learning in Libya

    45 shares
    Share 18 Tweet 11
LibyaHerald

The Libya Herald first appeared on 17 February 2012 – the first anniversary of the Libyan Revolution. Since then, it has become a favourite go-to source on news about Libya, for many in Libya and around the world, regularly attracting millions of hits.

Recent News

Libyan-Tunisia agricultural, marine and food sector B2B meetings – Tunis 19 to 20 June

Tripoli Chamber leading business delegation to Saudi on 22 August

Sitemap

  • Why subscribe?
  • Terms & Conditions
  • FAQs
  • Copyright & Intellectual Property Rights
  • Subscribe now

Newsletters

    Be the first to know latest important news & events directly to your inbox.

    Sending ...

    By signing up, I agree to our TOS and Privacy Policy.

    © 2022 LibyaHerald - Powered by Sparx Solutions.

    No Result
    View All Result
    • Login
    • Sign Up
    • Cart
    • Libya
    • Business
    • Advertising
    • About us
    • BusinessEye Magazine
    • Letters
    • Features
    • Why subscribe?
    • FAQs
    • Contact

    © 2022 LibyaHerald - Powered by Sparx Solutions.

    Welcome Back!

    Sign In with Facebook
    Sign In with Linked In
    OR

    Login to your account below

    Forgotten Password? Sign Up

    Create New Account!

    Sign Up with Facebook
    Sign Up with Linked In
    OR

    Fill the forms bellow to register

    *By registering into our website, you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
    All fields are required. Log In

    Retrieve your password

    Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

    Log In
    This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.
    Are you sure want to unlock this post?
    Unlock left : 0
    Are you sure want to cancel subscription?