Zohra Bensemra

Biography

Born in Algiers, Bensemra has worked as a photojournalist since 1990. Zohra Bensemra stated in her Reuters profile that she felt she first became a photographer in 1995. There was a car bombing in the Algerian capital, close to the newspaper where she was working. She took photos of the bodies and was upset, but the next day she felt ready to face anything. This is when she first felt like a photographer. She first worked for Reuters as a stringer during the Algerian Civil War in 1997. She went on in 2000 to cover the conflict between the Albanians and the Serbs in Macedonia. She was also assigned to Iraq in 2003. While working in Najaf, she became a staff photographer for Reuters. She has since covered the referendum in Sudan, the Tunisian uprising and the revolution in Libya.

In 2011, Zohra Bensemra's photographs were displayed at the Deutsche Bank building in Frankfurt, Germany. The bank's Global Head of Art, Friedhelm Hütte, commented: "Bensemra is an important artist to us as she knows how to cut through the borders of the mind to leave a lasting and meaningful impression. She has a great ability to show the underlying background stresses and problems in the conflicts of the moment." In 2012, she visited and took photos in Syria

Her work is usually done in countries suffering from internal conflict – social, economic, or humanitarian. Bensemra stated that her goal when photographing events is to promote a better understanding of the conflict to challenge those in power to improve the situation. Her favorite assignments are stories related to people's struggle for citizenship and human rights against dominating forces.

Awards

In 2005, Bensemra won the European Union prize for the best African photographer.