Best newspaper or wire service reporting from abroad
In a series of vividly descriptive reports from Chechnya, David Filipov depicted the ambiguity of a war in which Russian troops fought Islamic militants, Russian bandits fought Russian soldiers, and Chechen gangs fought Russians. Russian jets, meanwhile, indiscriminately bombed and strafed Chechen civilians. Filipov was one of the first to reach the Chechen capital of Grozny and reported from this no-man’s-land at considerable risk. He was also among a small group of journalists who were detained by Russian troops. His stories proved that the Russians suffered heavy losses despite official denials. And he raised the dark question of whether the Kremlin created the Chechen terrorist threat to enhance the image of presidential candidate Vladimir Putin.
Citations for Excellence:
Sander Thoenes
The Financial Times
For reporting from Indonesia and East ‘Timor (Posthumous)
Paul Watson
The Los Angeles Times
“Kosovo: A Witness to War”