A reporter from the Lincolnshire Echo is in Baghdad with a man who has travelled there as a political "human shield".

Brendan Montague (below) flew out to meet up with Stop the War campaigners who are placing their lives on the line to back up their beliefs that conflict is not the way to solve the problems of Iraq.

Despite advice from the Foreign Office to stay away from Iraq, around 500 peace campaigners from more than a dozen countries have gathered in Baghdad as a 'human shield'.

Among them are many British anti-war campaigners including Lincoln Big Issue seller Dave Howarth.

Brendan reported on his own experiences of crossing the border into Iraq and staying at a hotel in the capital while the politicians bring us ever closer to the brink of war, as well as interviewing the Lincoln man and some of his fellow protesters, who arrived in a red London double-decker bus.

He said, in the pages 1, 6 and 7 Echo spread: "The road journey itself was gruelling but the Iraqi border guards, though not exactly welcoming, were scarcely concerned by our presence.

"It was dark when they went through luggage and checked our equipment.

"Computers, cameras and various electronic bits and pieces were poked and prodded but nothing was even switched on.

"Fortunately we were spared the HIV blood tests which have come to be almost standard practice at the gates of Saddam Hussein's native land."

Echo editor Mike Sassi said: "We spoke to a member of the Human Shield from Lincoln, before he set off for Baghdad. He suggested that we sent a reporter to Iraq to see first hand what he was doing.

"Brendan was the obvious choice. He's a good journalist who has travelled extensively throughout the Middle East.

"We were concerned about his safety and we did take professional advice.

"However Brendan was very keen to go and we were satisfied that we weren't taking too big a risk in sending him.

"His journey was surprisingly easy to arrange, via commercial passenger flights. It wasn't difficult for him to meet up with the people he was looking for in Baghdad either. He e-mailed words and pictures back to us and we had them in the paper within hours.

"We believe his articles have given our readers a different view and added something extra to our coverage of the situation in Iraq."

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