An assignment is an assignment. In April this year, when fighting in Libya intensified, Altaf Qadri was asked by his employer Associated Press (AP) to go to the rebel areas. He left Delhi as soon as he could. Once there, Altaf established a routine. Along with other photojournalists, he would drive from Benghazi to Ajdabiya, the last town taken over by anti-Gaddafi rebels. The frontline would move from day to day, and most photojournalists would position themselves just out of range of the actual fighting to take pictures.
Altaf, keen to get closer to the action by travelling alongside a rebel group, got lucky one day. A rebel vehicle took him aboard. Soon, he was in the thick of it. Driving barely 300 metres ahead, the rebels fired a round of rocket propelled grenades (RPGs) at government forces. By the time they reloaded for round two, though, they were under heavy return fire themselves. Panic broke loose.
The other journalists, a little way behind, scurried to their vehicles and retreated to safety. In the heat of the melee, Altaf was thrown out of the rebel vehicle, and he ran for cover to an abandoned petrol station. He hid in a room at the back, only to have Gaddafi forces make their way there, hunting for rebels. Altaf was sure they’d sooner shoot him than ask for identification. “There I was, crouched in the stinkiest, darkest hole on earth for the whole day, while armed men smoked and laughed the hours away outside,” he recounts, “My satellite phone was with my colleague, my cellphone had no network. All my gear, including my laptop, was in the car we took from Benghazi.”,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
No comments:
Post a Comment