On January 17, Yemeni journalist Almigdad Mojalli was killed in a Saudi-led airstrike while reporting on civilian casualties in Jaref, a resort about 32 miles south of Yemen’s capital, Sanaa. Mojalli was on assignment for Voice of America. Bahir Hameed, a photojournalist who accompanied Mojalli that day, was injured in the attack. The following is Hameed’s account of what happened, as told to Mohammed Ali Kalfood, a journalist in Sanaa.
I HAD NEVER THOUGHT the place would come under aerial attack again, at least not that day, when I accompanied my friend Migdad Mojalli to Jaref.
We were visiting the resort several days after it had been bombed by airstrikes; we were on assignment for the Voice of America to report on civilian deaths there. Actually, that was our second visit to Jaref; we had been there a couple of days earlier, but Migdad was asked by his editor to reshoot the videos all over again in high quality, and to focus on some specific things. So we had to travel back to Jaref.
Jaref Resort, Yemen, January 2016.
Photo: Google Maps
We needed first to shoot the scene, the resort itself, where at least 21 civilians had been killed days earlier. It was really quiet; no one was there except the three of us. About 20 minutes after I started recording the scene, a warplane was heard roaring overhead. Everyone freaked out. I was so scared, looking into the sky and wondering whether it was really going to strike. The warplane was flying low. Migdad shouted, “Let’s spread out!”
We tried, but the missile was faster to hit the resort, just a few meters away from where we were standing. The explosion knocked me off my feet; I was flying before I rolled over a slope and landed a few meters away. I lay there for a couple of minutes. I was trembling with shock. Then I heard Migdad shouting for help. I was hardly able to stand up, feeling slight wounds in one of my legs and one arm.
I saw Migdad covered in blood, asking me to bandage his injuries. There were wounds in his chest and his face. He was grimacing and saying, “Wrap me up, bandage me quickly!”
I was still shaking and not able to comprehend what was happening. I couldn’t do anything, although I tried. Al-Suma’ea, our driver, managed to stand in spite of bad wounds in both of his legs and his arms. He asked me to bandage his wounds. I was really shaking and could barely do that. He then went to see Migdad. He tried to wrap Migdad’s wounds and I tried to help.
Almigdad Mojalli
Photo: Twitter
Then al-Suma’ea asked me to stay with Migdad. He drove as best as he could. Migdad lay there in silence. After nearly 10 minutes, we stopped by a small clinic. We found a man there, and he said, “There is nothing here we can help you with. Take him to the town of Belad al-Roos.”
We were desperate; we needed any medical help. When Al-Suma’ea shouted at the man and asked him to do whatever he could, the man said, “The warplane would come back and strike us here.” Al-Suma’ea was very angry. He looked over to see Migdad, then started the car and drove as fast as he could, heading for Sanaa.
Migdad was already dead when we left that clinic. It was really tragic. There was nothing we could do about the whole situation. We arrived at the 48th Hospital in Sanaa and medics received us in the emergency ward. Migdad was taken to the morgue. I still can’t believe everything that happened to us.
I hope the intercept posts more of these stories. My heart goes out to Almigdad Mojalli and his friends and family. I want to say that not a day goes by that I don’t think about the drones and bombs my country drops and the weapons we sell to countries like repressive Saudi and Egypt. I am so sorry that my country makes the world such a dangerous place and doesn’t attack it’s real enemies and instead attacks anybody while calling all enemies in combatant. I am ashamed by how my country ignore all human rights, puts prices on human lives, and strengthens dangerous countries for financial reasoning.
The illegal war in Yemen is a war I consider 95% American. If it wasn’t for America, you friend would be alive. I am so sorry for the turmoil that is happening because of greed.
Please continue what you do and be careful!!! You are so important for reporting on what you do, even while my country turns a blind eye. History remembers its victims. Living in America, I never get to read about life in these countries that we bomb from the perspective of it’s citizens and/or the victims who have no relation to terrorism past living in a country that America says is full of terrorists.
The US government (which selects targets for the Saudis) may possibly have targeted one of its own employees. It would be more humane, if they didn’t like his reporting, to simply lay him off. But then he could have sued them for wrongful dismissal. There is no easy way of terminating employees, but I’m confident that in every case, the US government examines all possible methods and chooses the most appropriate one.
After all, that’s what Human Resources departments are FOR.
The Voice of America is a U.S. government-run propaganda outfit. Why does the U.S. government fail to protect its own minions from attacks by U.S. allies when these minions are doing the U.S. government’s bidding? Can anyone explain this?
Well, if they be sendin’ home facts – versus fiction – in Hi-Def, mebbe take ’em out… Hypothetically, a good journalist – versus a “Good Journalist” title for an operative – would just be sayin’ and photographin’ – documenting – what they saw. That don’t seem to be playing well with the likes of Voice of America, or America The Empire, period. So, where are the operatives in the above story, if any? It’s also difficult to explain valid reasons for invading Iraq, Afghanistan (all with the help of a “volunteer” army and hordes of well-paid mercenaries and other HUGE private contractors) and a buncha other Pentagon moves in concert with various Allies in oil country. Maybe.
Dear Mr. Mohammed Ali Kalfood, I am so saddened to hear what happened to you and your colleagues working in Yemen, while reporting on the recent air strikes and civilian casualties. These strikes on non-combatants are evil and they must be stopped; your brave reporting will hopefully contribute to the cessation of this senseless violence. I hope you can take time and find the resources to heal and make a full recovery. Thank you that even in your grief and loss you are serving as a powerful witness. I will pray for your healing and implore my elected officials to cease selling arms and to work for peace in Yemen and the region.
Where were The Intercept’s incompetent reporters like Mohammed Ali Kalfood, when it was reported on 30 January 2016 that Houthi militants had detained dozens of activists, journalists and political opponents. (http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/2016/01/30/Yemen-s-Houthis-detain-activists-journalist-in-Sanaa.html).
Shameful biased reporting of Glenn Greenwald’s The Intercept continues. Totally hypocrite, not a single article has been written by The Intercept reporters about what has Houthi militants been doing in the Yemen; or what are their objectives.
and how many times do you hear the stories of the victims on other media outlets???? Every news outlet picks what they will focus on. The intercept focuses on the side that receives no attention and gives it a voices. That’s reporting, not bias….
The ultimate hypocrites are not the journalists at the intercept. The Intercept does look at both sides of the story. But the Houthi’s have plenty of coverage on why they are horrible people who hate America (I guess people like you think for no reason pass our freedoms….. But it’s because we don’t care what the Yemini government did to the Houthi youths, even if it meant kill them.)
There’s nothing shameful about the Intercept. But you getting SO offended by the story of a journalist being killed and ignored due to his location, heritage and reporting? Yea, that’s shameful.
Go watch FOX, MSNBC OAN or CNN. You’ll find plenty of coverage of the story you’re more interesting in there. Want to hear about stories you won’t hear or victims of the war from OUR country? Come here. You won’t find them in American media.
Oh, and you might want to consider the/your relationship with the/your Editor… and the “Voice of America”… Your communications with same electronic? Do you carry cell phones, pagers, laptops, etcetera…? Especially since “they” wanted “better” or “higher definition” photos…
Some years ago it was suggested by a management/labor consultant to any number of persons around myself that if one’s “superiors” and the organization were out of congruence with one’s deeper values (survival?) and integrity, one might wanna seek right livelihood elsewhere, for one’s own – and all of our – sake…
So, Mr. Assange is in effect “doing time” and an international fugitive for releasing, widely, documentation of this kind of thing… Interesting that a re-attack took place just for, and upon, the journalists’ return – in a very timely fashion. Guess one – anyone, journalist, civilian, child, dog, bird, goat, tree – doesn’t want to be anywhere well armed oil business (Empire, International, Global) rivals might be wanting in on the former homeslice (homepersons, local, native) local trade of anything, at all… even documenting the truth. Anywhere, like this resort, looks like a pretty nice place to be until the eye of the Axis of… whatever (Good?) happens to fall upon said location. Prayers for the end of suffering of all beings…
This is tragic.
Why isn’t it an international scandal?
2 journalists and a driver standing around, presumably with cameras and no weapons in a bombed out area with no one else present, should be quite visible by those “targeting” them.
Who ordered this strike and why? I hope Glenn or one of the other Intercept reports digs deeper.
Did you not have “press” or some other insignia on your vehicle?
It’s very tragic indeed — unfortunately, these tragedies have occurred in many other countries in recent memory, and since mainstream media distracts people with other stories, news like this go relatively unnoticed or not talked about.
In comparison, in the late 30’s and even the early 40’s few journalists talked about concentration camps, even though the Third Reich had murdered several million people in these camps that are all located near populated areas.
Is this sort of attack unusual? I was under the impression that the U.S. and many other countries had embraced the terrorists’ “double tap” methodology wholeheartedly, and that anyone attempting to salvage, photograph, or rescue wounded at a previously bombed site was considered fair game… probably counted as a “[suspected] militant” in the statistics, for that matter.
The reaction at the clinic is evidence that the message of the MSF bombings have sunk in. Between US and Saudis, how many MSF clinics have been destroyed now – three, I think? Setting a new international ethics standard that clinics are fair game for bombing … that is definitely going to come back to bite us in the ass.
Not “us”
Anyone who uses a hospital, at least. It massively increases the odds a truckbomb takes out a major hospital in America, and it probably even more increases the chance that a floating hospital ship, sent in as a gesture of goodwill after some earthquake in the Middle East, will be blown up together with their own civilians. This kind of moral boundary ought to protect all, and when it is destroyed, all are at risk.