Journalists Killed in 2013 - Motive Confirmed: Shahir al-Muaddamani

Local Council of Deraya City Media Office
August 16, 2013, in Daraya, Syria

Al-Muaddamani was killed by a shell while on his way to cover clashes in Daraya, a suburb of Damascus, according to news reports and Mohanad Abu al-Zein, the current director of the media office of the Local Council of Daraya City.

Before his death, al-Muaddamani was the director of the media office. He also worked as a photographer and videographer for the media office, filming and reporting on clashes and other local events, including documenting the destruction in Daraya from regime bombardment.

The Local Council of Daraya City coordinates opposition civil society and relief efforts in Daraya. The media office affiliated with the local group provides news coverage of events in the city. The media office's YouTube channel has posted more than 1,000 videos, and its staffers, including al-Zein, have been interviewed on international news outlets, including Al-Jazeera and the Huffington Post. A video from the media office was also featured on The New York Times' Watching Syria's War Project.

Video footage and news updates provided by citizen journalists in Syria have been crucial to outside coverage of the Syrian conflict, as international journalists are often unable to cover areas such as Daraya due to government restrictions on travel and the danger posed by widespread fighting.

Al-Muaddamani was studying business and banking when the revolution began, but left to participate in peaceful protests against the regime, according to the Syrian opposition weekly Enab Baladi. He subsequently joined the media office of the Local Council of Daraya City.

According to both Enab Baladi and Shawara'na, an opposition magazine, al-Muaddamani was known among his colleagues for his mechanical and technical expertise with media equipment.