Iraqi Comedian Killed.

133rd Media Person killed in 2006

On Monday, November 20, 2006, Walid Hassan 47, a Shiite Muslim and father of five children, was assassinate by a Sunni death squad by multiple gunshot wounds to his back and neck. His body was found in the Shiite Yarmouk neighborhood in west Baghdad. His was the 133rd media worker to be killed in 2006. Described by friends as tall with gray-flecked hair and a warm smile, he was the second employee of al-Sharkiya television, an independent channel owned by a London-based Iraqi businessman, to be killed this month. Al-Sharkiya is one of the multitude of television channels which blossomed in Iraq in the months following the U.S.-led invasion.

On his weekend television show, "Caricature," he poked fun at the poor security, the long gas lines, the electricity blackouts and the ineffective politicians. He provided a much needed release for a nation bottled up with frustration. "He was a star in the galaxy of Iraqi arts," said the show's director. "Now, he's another sacrifice on the altar of this slaughtered country."

The directorsaid it wasn't certain whether the show would stay on air. "Since the program is a comedy, the laughter that will come out will be soaked with blood." Washington Post, November 21, 2006