Arab media plea for French woman

By Sebastian Usher
BBC world media correspondent

Florence Aubenas has covered conflicts in Rwanda and Algeria

A group of Arab journalists have called for the release of a French reporter who went missing in Iraq on 5 January.

They said they would do all they could to raise awareness in the Arab world of the plight of Florence Aubenas and interpreter Hussein Hanoun Al-Saadi.

The fate of Ms Aubenas and Mr Saadi remains unclear.

But it seems probable that they have been seized by one of the groups in Iraq that have kidnapped a number of Westerners and Iraqis in the region.

Among the journalists to call for their release - if they have indeed been kidnapped - are the editor and publisher of influential pan-Arab newspaper al-Quds and several journalists at the most watched Arab television stations, al-Jazeera and al-Arabiya.

Direct appeal

Their appeal was published in a Tunisian internet newspaper, Kalima, under the headline "Let's save Florence's life".

The editor of Kalima, Siham Bensedrine, has told Liberation - the newspaper Ms Aubenas works for - that the journalists feel it is vital to protect the few independent voices still reporting from Iraq.

The Arab media has played an important role in a number of kidnappings of Westerners in Iraq - including that of two other French journalists, now both released - by acting as a way for governments, families and charities to appeal directly to the hostage-takers.

It has also given voice to the many expressions of outrage and condemnation in the Arab world over the kidnapping and killing of Westerners in Iraq.