Steven Wassenaar

Dutch Print Journalist and Photographer - Injured in Mortar Attack in Syria

Steven Wassenaar, an experienced print and photo journalist, was injured in the Homs explosion that killed French TV reporter Gilles Jacquier on 11 January this year.

He had travelled to the city with a group of international journalists as part of a three-week assignment, and was taking pictures near a school under the watchful eye of the secuity forces, when shells began landing nearby. Steven and his colleagues ran into a nearby building to protect themselves but it was hit by two mortar bombs.

Gilles Jacquier was killed instantly. Steven was thrown to the floor and injured by a mortar fragment that embedded in his face, very near to his left eye. 

Steven was eventually evacuated to a hospital and then out of Homs. Because he had insurance all of his medical and repatriation costs were covered, but when we contacted Steven in January he was still recovering from his eye injury and the effects of trauma from the blast.

His main concern was providing for his family. It was too early for him to return to work and, unable to complete any of the assignments in Syria, he had also lost an estimated two months of income. 

The Trust ensured that Steven and his family were financially secure for two to three months so that he could focus on his own rehabilitation. He has since recovered from his injury and gone on to produce stories on Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Salafist extremism in Tunisia and also covered the presidential elections in France.

Steven’s photographs including those from Syria can be found on his website and photoshelter.