Aswat al-Iraq (in Arabic اصوات العراق, Kurdish ئه‌سوات ئه‌لعیراق) is an independent national news agency in Iraq, established in 2004. Funded by the

United Nations Development Program The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries Poverty reduction, eliminate poverty and achieve Sustainable development, sustainable economic growth and Human development (economics), hu ...

, and with assistance from the

Reuters Foundation Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency ...

and

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, it produces over 60 stories a day in Arabic, some 20 to 25 in English and 15 to 20 in the

Sorani Central Kurdish, also known as Sorani Kurdish, is a Kurdish dialect or a language spoken in Iraq, mainly in Iraqi Kurdistan, as well as the provinces of Kurdistan, Kermanshah, and West Azerbaijan in western Iran. Central Kurdish is one of the ...

dialect of Kurdish. All stories are published on the agency's website. Aswat al-Iraq means 'Voices of Iraq' in English. Aswat's director is the Iraqi journalist and writer Zuhair Al-Jezairy, who in 2008 was a visiting scholar at the

U.S. Institute of Peace The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) is an American independent, nonprofit, national institute funded by the U.S. Congress and tasked with promoting conflict resolution and prevention worldwide. See alsPDF on USIP website. It provides rese ...

. Its current operational base is in the

Iraqi Kurdistan Iraqi Kurdistan or Southern Kurdistan () refers to the Kurds, Kurdish-populated part of northern Iraq. It is considered one of the four parts of Greater Kurdistan in West Asia, which also includes parts of southeastern Turkey (Northern Kurdist ...

region, in the city of Irbil. The agency operates a network of reporters and stringers in all of Iraq's 18 governorates, plus regional cities of importance to Iraqi news such as

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and

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

. Its Arabic service has long been widely reprinted and used by media in Iraq and the wider

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, such as the London-based '' Al Sharq Al Awsat'' newspaper, the Jordanian newspaper '' Ad Dustour'', and the

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. Its English service has been quoted in international media, such as ''

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'', ''

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'', the UK's ''

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'' and Germany's DPA, as well the NGO

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. Three journalists who worked for Aswat al-Iraq have been killed, including Sahar Hussein al-Haideri, who in 2007 won a Kurt Schork award in International Journalism, and in 2008 posthumously won an Amnesty International UK Media award. Aswat al-Iraq was based in

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

until 2005, when it move to

, citing security concerns. In Cairo it was hosted by the Egyptian Journalists Syndicate. The desk moved to Irbil in the spring of 2007 and maintains a network of correspondents and editors in the Iraqi capital. Aswat has served as a training school for journalism since its inception. Interviews with director Jezairy, editors, clients and supporters of the agency are online in Arabic, English and Kurdish Legally, Aswat is registered both as an

offshore company The term "offshore company" or "offshore corporation" is used in at least two distinct and different ways. An offshore company may be a reference to: * a company, group or sometimes a division thereof, which engages in offshoring business proce ...

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

and a non-profit organisation in the Kurdish autonomous region. Registration as an NGO in Baghdad is in process.

References

External links

Official website in English
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aswat Al-Iraq 2004 establishments in Iraq Government agencies established in 2004 News agencies based in Iraq Arab news agencies Mass media in Baghdad Mass media in Cairo