Al Jazeera honoured by Roosevelt Foundation

Al Jazeera has been awarded the Freedom of Speech and Expression Medal by the Roosevelt Foundation for its "longstanding efforts to provide independent, impartial news for an international audience". The Middle East broadcaster is dedicating the award to fallen journalists, including Ali Hassan Al-Jaber, the Al Jazeera cameraman who was shot dead while filming the uprising in Libya in March 2011. Al Jazeera's director general Ahmed bin Jassim Al-Thani will accept the award at a ceremony on 12 May 2012 in Nieuwe Kerk in Middelburg, Netherlands in the presence of Queen Beatrix. "We are truly honoured and humbled to receive the Freedom of Speech and Expression Award. This award is a testament to the dedication of all of our employees, who have worked tirelessly, often risking their lives to bring under-reported stories from across the world to light," he said once it was announced. "Al Jazeera has grown from strength to strength since our inception in 1996. We started out as the first independent Arabic news channel in the world, with a clear vision to providing in-depth, honest, and independent coverage for the region and giving a voice to the voiceless. This past year our coverage of the Arab Awakening continued with the same dedication and mandate resulting in accolades from our peers and audiences across the globe." Al-Thani also paid tribute to Ali Hassan Al-Jaber, "a brave and committed individual", along with Tareq Ayoub and Rasheed Wali, who died in 2003 while reporting for Al Jazeera from the Iraq war. "Their legacy lives on as we dedicate this award in their memory as well as to all the journalists across the world who have died or been injured while protecting the freedom of speech," he said. The Roosevelt Institute and the Roosevelt Stichting have awarded Four Freedoms medals each year since 1982 to individuals who exemplify the vision of the Four Freedoms that President Roosevelt outlined in his famous 6 January 1941 speech. Previous winners of Freedoms Medals have included Nelson Mandela, J. William Fulbright, Arthur Miller, Desmond Tutu, Terry Waite, Jimmy Carter and John F Kennedy.