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Yasser Salihee

From the news reports:

He said he left his position as a doctor at Baghdad's Yarmouk Hospital because of low salaries paid by the Iraqi government. He didn't lose his passion for helping others through medicine, though: He volunteered at medical clinics on his days off.

He reported and wrote frequently about the nation's political turmoil, with particular attention to the minority Sunni population and its lack of unity.

Knight Ridder Baghdad Bureau Chief Hannah Allam recently wrote of Salihee: "We weren't really looking for reporters at the time, but Yasser's impeccable English and sunny personality made him too hard to pass up. We hired him and took great delight in watching him blossom into one of our best reporters, the one who accompanied us to militant mosques and talked his way into insurgent-controlled Fallujah."

KR 29 Jun 2005

Yasser worked as an Iraqi correspondent for Knight Ridder, relentlessly pursuing stories that put him in harm's way because he wanted to show American readers the realities of life in a war zone.

His curiosity took him across Iraq. He interviewed an insurgent leader at a clandestine meeting in Baghdad. He braved the road through the "Triangle of Death" to cover the aftermath of a battle in Najaf. He kept his cool in Fallujah as he convinced rebels with grenade launchers that we were "just journalists." ...

Yasser impressed us as charming, intelligent and eager, so we hired him on the spot. He turned out to be a favorite for the stream of Knight Ridder journalists who came from far and wide for eight-week reporting stints in Baghdad. Besides helping us make sense of Iraqi politics and violence, Yasser showed his new American friends slivers of Iraq that never seemed to make it into the headlines. ...

Yasser happily accepted grueling, perilous assignments, and he rejoiced when his work appeared on the front pages of newspapers across the United States. ...

After one particularly bloody bombing, Yasser returned to the bureau late and exhausted. We found out he'd not only covered the story, he'd also helped the overwhelmed doctors at the scene treat the wounded. As he put it to me later, "I was doing sutures, taking notes, doing sutures, taking notes." ...

Yasser's demanding job as a reporter inevitably meant less time with his wife, a doctor named Raghad, and their adorable, blue-eyed daughter, 2-year-old Danya. He raved about his family, brought them to staff dinners and posted photos of them in the office. ...

Yasser's widow showed me photos of their wedding day, a huge celebration with white lace and a tall cake. Raghad managed a small laugh as she recounted how this fearless doctor had fainted in the hospital when she gave birth to their daughter.

KR 30 Jun

He was a man with a great deal of curiosity and respect for facts. He also had no problem telling me what to do. ...

Yasser would put down his notebook and help tend to wounded people. Yasser Salihee's talents were not solely his own, they reached beyond him, into possibilities for his wounded country. But his future is gone, and with it goes a measure of hope for Iraq.

Salon 27 Jul 2005

Age 30
Sex Male
Occupation Journalist
Nationality Iraqi
Marital status Husband
Parental status Father

Recorded in IBC incident k1524

Location: Amariyah, Baghdad

Date: 24 June 2005