BBC cameraman released

A BBC cameraman was released after being held in Iraq by the US for 23 days, a military spokesman confirmed today.

Ali al-Mashhadani, who also works for the Reuters news agency and National Public Radio, had been detained twice before by the US, including for a five-month stretch.

US military spokesman Major John Hall said in a statement today that Mr Al-Mashhadani was freed “because he was deemed not to be a security threat.” He did not elaborate.

Reuters and BBC demanded an explanation for Mr Al-Mashhadani’s detention.

Reporters Without Border demanded that the military halt what it described as arbitrary arrests of journalists in Iraq.