Folha photojournalist grazed by bullet in Cairo

08/16/2013 - 13h32

A bullet grazed the head of Folha photojournalist Joel Silva, 47, during a shooting in Cairo on Friday afternoon. He is doing well.

Silva was photographing protests around the city when a confrontation erupted between supporters of ousted President Mohammed Mursi and those who oppose him. His supporters, who are Islamists, want the restitution of the president elect, while the opposition defend the coup carried out by the army last July 3.

This Friday, the Islamists held at least 28 marches in the Egyptian capital that went toward Ramsés Square, where the photojournalist was located only moments before the incident. On Wednesday (14), the army led a violent operation that put an end to two long protests and left at least 638 dead and more than 4000 injured.

Silva was treated by doctors in his hotel and is doing well. He recounted that the shots fired, which he filmed, started in front o a police building located underneath an important viaduct in Cairo. He returned after realizing the situation in Ramsés Square had become very dangerous.

After he was injured, the Egyptian army took Silva in a Jeep back to the hotel where he is staying.

The medical team that assessed Silva's injury established that he is not at risk. He has a head wound already treated by a nurse, Ayman Mohsen.

Several people in the streets who tried to surround journalists, calling them spies, approached the reporter. The Folha team had separated itself from the turmoil minutes earlier.
"I didn't realize at the time," said Silva, who was wearing a bulletproof vest and helmet when he was injured. "I felt a thud on my helmet, and someone nearby told me I had been shot."
Silva has photographed other armed conflicts for Folha, like the March 2011 insurgence against ex-dictator Muammar Gaddafi. He has also already been in a FARC camp in Colombia and has participated in the coverage of other international events, like the 1998 and 2010 World Cups.

The army has surrounded the hotel where the reporter is staying. Sounds of shots being fired can be heard in the vicinity. Employees have alerted guests to stay away from windows because of the risk of being hit by stray bullets.

Translated by JILL LANGLOIS

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