Manu Brabo
Manu Brabo (born c. 1981) is a Spanish photojournalist who was captured in Libya along with three other journalists while covering the Libyan Civil War in 2011 and who was part of the Associated Press team to win the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography in 2013.
Also recorded as Manuel Varela de Seijas Brabo
Manu Brabo
- Name
- Manuel Brabo
- Birth Name
- Manuel Varela de Seijas Bravo
- Born
- ca. 1981
- Birthplace
- Zaragoza, Spain
- Education
- School of Arts and Crafts, Oviedo Charles III University, Madrid
- Occupation
- Photojournalist
- Known for
- Photojournalism in conflict areas
- Awards
- Pulitzer Prize in Breaking News Photography in 2013
- Nationality
- Spain
- Languages
- Spanish
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Documentary summary
Manu Brabo (born c. 1981) is a Spanish photojournalist who was captured in Libya along with three other journalists while covering the Libyan Civil War in 2011 and who was part of the Associated Press team to win the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography in 2013.
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Note VALÉORINE
Manu Brabo (born 1981) is a Spanish journalist and photographer. The journalist was born in Oviedo. Manu Brabo studied at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Languages used include Spanish.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 01 October 2026
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Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q5939261 · wikipedia · Manu Brabo
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Manuel Brabo • Birth Name — Manuel Varela de Seijas Bravo • Born — ca. 1981 • Birthplace — Zaragoza, Spain • Disappeared Date — April 5, 2011 • Disappeared Place — Libyan desert near Brega • Disappeared Status — Detained in Tripoli, released May 18, 2011 • Education — School of Arts and Crafts, Oviedo Charles III University, Madrid • Occupation — Photojournalist • Employer — Freelance • Known for — Photojournalism in conflict areas • Awards — Pulitzer Prize in Breaking News Photography in 2013 • Website — manubrabo.22slides.com
Personal
Personal
Manuel Varela de Seijas Bravo was born in Zaragoza, Spain around 1981 and lived in Gijón, Spain. He studied photography at the School of Arts and Crafts in Oviedo and journalism at Charles III University in Madrid.
Career
Career
After completing his education, Brabo worked at some Spanish newspapers and news agencies. He covered the Libyan Civil War in 2011, the Syrian Civil War, the Russo-Ukrainian war and the war in Iraq as other conflicts. He has worked as a freelance photojournalist for the Associated Press (AP) and the European Pressphoto Agency, and his work has been published in newspapers and magazines. He is co-founder with Spanish photographers Guillem Valle, José Colón and Diego Ibarra as well as the Italian Fabio Bucciarelli, of MEMO, a cooperative of photojournalists created in 2014 in Torino, Italy.
Disappearance
Disappearance
Libya On 5 April 2011, Brabo along with journalists James Foley, Clare Morgana Gillis and Anton Hammerl were reportedly detained by pro-Gaddafi soldiers in the Libyan Desert near Brega. As they were traveling with an unorganized militia they witnessed a military truck approaching them. It was then that one of the journalists, later identified as Hammerl, was shot from the military truck. Brabo was one of the 16 journalists detained in Tripoli. While being held in Tripoli, they received a visit from a Spanish diplomat who reported that Brabo along with others were being held humanely and were treated well. He and the other journalists were found guilty in a Libyan court for entering without a proper visa and their sentences suspended. Brabo and the others were released on 18 May 2011.
Identity
Identity
Manu Brabo is recorded with the occupation photographer. Recorded as photographer and journalist.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1981
Manu Brabo was born on 1 January 1981.
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Manu Brabo”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q5939261: Manu Brabo
General reference · Wikidata
Pulitzer Prize (2013)
Pulitzer Prize (2013)
Brabo took a photograph on 3 October 2012 during the aftermath of a car bombing in Aleppo, Syria. This photograph was part of a series of Associated Press breaking news photographs awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography in 2013. Brabo shared the prize with AP photographers Rodrigo Abd, Narciso Contreras, Khalil Hamra and Muhammed Muheisen.
Awards
Awards
• 2006: Premio Autor Joven (Translated: Young Authors Award) for "Caminos de hierro" • 2009: Premio Nómadas Periscopio (Translated: Nomads Periscope Award) at the Festival of Photojournalism in Vitoria • 2011: The Atlanta Photojournalism Seminar: Chris Hondros Memorial International News Award, 1st place, General News • 2012: Alliance of Mediterranean News Agencies Awards, Best Photo 2011-2012 • 2012: The Atlanta Photojournalism Seminar: Chris Hondros Memorial International News Award, 1st place, General News • 2012: National Headliner Awards, 1st place & Best In Show • 2012: Prix Bayeux-Calvados for War Correspondents, Audience Award • 2013: China International Press Photo, Silver prize, War and Disaster News Stories • 2013: Overseas Press Club of America, Honorable Mention, Robert Capa Gold Medal • 2013: Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography, along with Rodrigo Abd, Narciso Contreras, Khalil Hamra, and Muhammed Muheisen • 2013: Pictures of the Year International, 1st place, Spot News • 2014: Giornalisti del Mediterraneo, Italy • 2015: British Journalism Awards, Photojournalism • 2016: Pictures of the Year International, 2nd, News Picture Story • 2016: Press Awards, UK. "Photographer of the year 2015"
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Avax News. Fact --> AP Photographer Manu Brabo.
- 2.Un fotógrafo nacido en Zaragoza desaparece en Libia. 7 April 2011.
- 3.Fotógrafos - El fotógrafo Manu Brabo, segundo español en ganar el Premio Pulitzer. Curiosos de la Fotografía. 16 April 2013.
- 4.Bauder, David. Sixteen journalists detained, missing in Libya. Mail & Guardian. April 27, 2011.
- 5.Govende, Prega. Journalist describes drama of shooting. The Herald (South Africa). May 13, 2011.
- 6.Harris, Elizabeth A. Four Foreign Journalists Held in Libya. The New York Times. April 7, 2011.
- 7.Ajam, Kashiefa. Crossing a line in the sand; It was all so confusing. Anton Hammerl sensed something was wrong, but then the gunfire started. The Herald (South Africa). May 18, 2011.
- 8.Bergareche, Borja. Spanish, US journalists reportedly held in Libyan capital Tripoli. BBC Monitoring Middle East. April 19, 2011.
- 9.ABC. Spanish diplomat visits photojournalist detained in Libya. May 11, 2011.
- 10.Burns, John F. Libya Releases Journalists It Held for Weeks. The New York Times. May 19, 2011.
- 11.The National. Manu Brabo, Associated Press photographer, talks about his time in Syria. January 2026.
- 12.Associated Press. AP wins Pulitzer for Syria photos; is finalist for Syria reporting. April 15, 2013.
- 13.New York Times Wins Four Pulitzer Prizes
- 14.In pictures: Photo Pulitzer Prize Winners. BBC News. 2013-04-16.
- 15.AP wins Pulitzer for Syria photos; is finalist for Syria reporting. The Associated Press.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessauthority record
General reference
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 18 August 2026.
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