Iraqi official blames media for Islamic State war failures
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Iraq's interior minister summoned dozens of journalists Wednesday to partially blame them for security force setbacks amid the war against the Islamic State group, laying bare the Baghdad's Shiite-led government sensitivity to criticism.
The comments by Mohammed Salem al-Ghabban, in charge of Iraq's police, come after Reuters bureau chief recently left the country after threats against him by Shiite militias over a story about abuses and looting following the capture of Tikrit.
Al-Ghabban also suggested blame for the collapse of Iraqi forces last summer in the initial onslaught by the extremists, who hold a third of Iraq and Syria in their self-declared caliphate, also lay at the feet of journalists.
"Most of the security collapses that took place were due to psychological warfare," he told gathered journalists. "The media has a major role in creating this feeling among the people."
