French bloggers support Libya's revolution in Misrata

"We came here to support this revolution... supporting the people also means taking on their risks," said the group in an email statement to the press.

For Baptiste Dubonnet, their friend, that risk translated into a bullet to the neck, causing injuries severe enough to lead to paralysis, his doctor in Benghazi said.

Attacks focused on Misrata's strategic port delayed his evacuation.

"We had some delays because of the security situation, the shelling and the bombing," said Othman Belbeisi, senior operations officer at the International Organisation for Migration.

Dubonnet travelled 17 hours by sea in an intensive care unit equipped by a specialised medical team organised by French authorities before docking on Thursday (28 April 2011) in the port city of Benghazi.

His long-term prognosis is still unclear, medics said, adding they hoped he could be transfered to a medical facility in France when stable.

Wire services and international newspapers have been sending journalists to Misrata typically for short-stints and sometimes with security advisers, to mitigate the risks of covering the open conflict.

But precautions do not prevent casualties when covering Libya.

Two war photographers, Chris Hondros and Tim Hetherington, died after being hit in a mortar round in Misrata, which also wounded two of their colleagues.

Ali Hassan al-Jaber, an Al-Jazeera cameraman, died March 12 in an ambush near Benghazi.

More than a dozen journalists are being held by the Kadhafi regime, the Benghazi-based opposition Transitional National Council has said.

Four foreign correspondents have been confirmed to be in government in custody in Libya, the Committee to Protect Journalists reported.

Source: AFP