User:Crtew/2013 Safety of Journalists

2013 Safety of Journalists new article content ...

As in 2012, the first journalist was killed in Syria as a result of the ongoing Syrian civil war. Syria was the deadliest country in 2012 and that trend continued in 2013. By April 2013, the United Nations estimated that since March 2011 93,901 people had died and of those 6,561 were children.

The problem of impunity continues to be a problem in nations with the largest number of killings of journalists in most recent years, such as Pakistan, Mexico and Somalia. In Somalia, Radio Shabelle was particularly vulnerable to the repeated killings of its journalists

Who is killed?

Number of journalists killed in 2013 is currently (17 March 2013) 43 with (30 IPI listed) = 36 killed (16 RSF determined) (14 CPJ confirmed) (18 Unesco condemned) / + 4 died while reporting (accidental) / + 1 killed in an alleged criminal event but not journalism-related.

Numbers tallied by country:
 * Syria - 25 names are listed; details are known about 9 of those (IPI counts 10, including Ahmed Khaled Shehadeh, killed on 12 or 15 March 2012) (CPJ confirmed 9 = 8 + 1 in Turkey) (RSF determined 6)
 * Pakistan - 8 = 7 killed (IPI counted 7) (RSF determined 6) (CPJ confirmed 4) / + 1 allegedly killed but not as a result of his reporting (criminal)
 * Somalia - 5 (IPI counted 5) (CPJ confirmed 2) (RSF determined 2)
 * Brazil - 5 (IPI counted 5) (RSF determined 4) (CPJ confirmed 3)
 * Africa (continent) - 3 died while reporting in South Africa, Saychelles and Kenya (all accidental)
 * Egypt - 2
 * Guatemala -2 (IPI counted 2)
 * Iraq - 1
 * Yemen - 1 (IPI counted 1)
 * Central African Republic - 1
 * Nigeria - 1
 * Tanzania - 1
 * Paraguay - 1 (IPI counted and RSF determined 1)
 * Peru - 1 (IPI counted 1)
 * Ecuador - 1 (IPI counted 1)
 * Mexico - 1 (IPI counted and RSF determined 1)
 * Haiti - 1 (IPI counted 1)
 * Afghanistan - 1
 * India - 1 (IPI counted 1)
 * Bangladesh - 1
 * China - 1 died while reporting at a construction site in China (accidental)
 * Russia 1 (IPI counted 1)

Undetermined location

 * Suhail Mahmoud Al-Ali (also spelled Sohail Mahmud Ali), who reported for Addounia TV, which is a pro-state media outlet, was killed either in Aleppo or Damascus, Syria, 4 January 2013.    (CPJ confirmed; Damascus) (RSF determined; Aleppo) (Unesco condemned; Aleppo)

Battle of Aleppo (2012–2013)

 * French publisher, editor and journalist Yves Debay, who operates Assaut, was killed 17 January by sniper fire in Aleppo, Syria (as reported 18 January) and taken to the Turkish border by a Syrian activist (CPJ confirmed).      (CPJ confirmed) (RSF determined) (Unesco condemned)

Damascus

 * Mohamed Abd Al-Rahman was shot by a pro-government group in Damascus on January 24. (CPJ unconfirmed)


 * On 3 March 2013, citizen journalist Walid Jamil Amira working for the Jobar Media Center was killed by sniper fire in Damascus, Syria. (CPJ confirmed)


 * On 10 March 2013, two citizen journalists working for the Qaboun Media Center, Ghaith Abd al-Jawad and Amr Badir al-Deen Junaid, were killed in Damascus, Syria, by Syrian Army shelling. (CPJ confirmed)


 * The government announced 1 April 2013 that Abdul Raheem Kour Hassan, radio director for Watan FM, had died. He was being held in a Syrian military intelligence prison in Damascus but no details are known about how he died.

Daraa Governorate

 * Mohammed al-Masalmeh, or Mohamed al-Mesalma, an Al Jazeera TV reporter who was also known by his pen name Mohammed al-Horani, was killed January 18 by sniper fire in Daraa Governorate, Syria.  (CPJ confirmed) (RSF determined) (Unesco condemned)

Idlib

 * Olivier Voisin was injured 21 February while he was covering the Syrian civil war as an embedded photojournalist with rebel soldiers, and he died 24 February in Turkey (CPJ confirmed). (CPJ confirmed) (RSF determined) (Unesco condemned)

The following excerpt from Voisin was sent one day before his injury in Syria:"The artillery fires almost every 20 minutes and the ground often trembles. The problem is that I think that these are blind fires and their cannons are strong enough to cover about 20 kilometers. There aren't many direct combats. The guys would need about $20 U.S. worth of munitions for two-four hour battles. Therefore, their battles are shorter. During the day, nothing happens. I even wonder how they expect to win this war. This only confirms my fears that this war will last a long time."

Homs

 * Yara Abbas was killed by a rebel sniper near the Debaa airport and Lebanon/Syrian border in the Homs Governate on May 27. She was a journalist for Al-Ikhbariya, whose reporting has been favorable to the government. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, she was known for her reporting from the front lines. (CPJ confirmed) (RSF determined) (Unesco condemned)

Balochistan

 * Three Pakistani journalists were killed by a double suicide bombing in Quetta, Pakistan, 11 January 2013 (CPJ confirmed). Two journalists, camera operator Imran Shaikh and journalist Saif-ur-Rehman, worked for SAMAA TV, while News Network International (NNI) photojournalist Mohammad Iqbal also died.    The militant terrorist group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi took responsibility for the mass murder and attack. (CPJ confirmed) / (RSF determined) / (Unesco condemned) / (IPI listed)


 * Mehmud Jan Afridi (also transliterated as Mehmood Ahmed Afridi), a journalist for Daily Intejab, was killed by gunfire 1 March from two men on a motorcycle in the city of Kalat, which is in Balochistan. Investigators say Afridi was targeted.   (RSF determined) (Unesco condemned)

Federally Administered Tribal Areas

 * Malik Mumtaz Khan, a GEO TV news journalist, was killed in the frontier area in North Waziristan.    (RSF determined) (Unesco condemned)


 * Aslam Durrani, who was the news editor of the Daily Pakistan, was killed 16 April 2013 in a bomb attack conducted by the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan at an Awami League political rally in Peshwar, while two more journalists were injured in the attack that killed around 20 people. (CPJ confirmed) (RSF determined)

Karachi

 * Ali Shaikh, was a victim of extortion, killed in a hit and run incident, after he moved into a neighborhood, was ordered to pay for his safety, which he refused, and threatened. He was the head of his local union.

Punjab

 * Ahmed Ali Joiya, a well-known crime journalist, was assisting police and was killed May 24 in Bahawalnagar.

Afghanistan

 * Mohammad Mohsin Hashimi, a journalist for Voice of Nijrab, was killed in the northern Kapisa Province.

India

 * Nemichand Jain or Nemi Chand Jain

Bangladesh

 * Ahmed Rajib Haider (CPJ unconfirmed)

China

 * Bailu, an intern journalist for Urumqi Evening Post, was killed at a construction site in Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur, while another intern was injured.

Thailand
A Thai court determined through investigations into the shooting of Italian photojournalist Fabio Polenghi that he was killed by a bullet shot by the army.

Somalia

 * Abdihared Osman Aden, who was a producer for Radio Shabelle, was killed in Mogadishu, Somalia, 18 January.     (CPJ confirmed) (RSF determined) (Unesco condemned)
 * Mohamed Ali Nuxurkey was killed 18 March 2013 in Mogadishu, Somalia, where he had been active as a journalist for Radio Mustaqbal and a leader of journalists.
 * Rahmo Abdulqadir or Rahma Abdulkadir a journalist focused on women's rights from Radio Caabudwaaq, which in the Galgaduud administrative region, was shot dead while visiting Mogadishu. (Unesco condemned)
 * Mohamed Hassan Habeeb was killed 14 April 2013 in a suicide bombing at a court in Mogadishu. The journalist was acting as a media adviser in a court case at the time.
 * Mohamed Ibrahim Rageh was killed 21 April 2013 at his home in the Dharkenley district of Mogadishu, Somalia. He was a broadcast journalist for both Radio Mogadishu and Somali National Television. (CPJ confirmed) (RSF determined) (Unesco condemned)

Other articles about this topic:

Egypt
Written for August 2013 Egyptian raids on 17 August 2013.

During the attack, journalists covering the event were trapped, and the military killed four journalists and injured and arrested others. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists it was the deadliest day for journalists in Egypt since the organization began keeping records in 1992. Veteran Sky News camera operator Michael "Mick" Deane, 61, was killed. He had worked for CNN before working for Sky News for 15 years. He was married to Washington Post journalist Daniela Deane. Photos of Deane's body showed that he was wearing a helmet that clearly identified him as a journalist. He was the 1000th journalist recorded killed world wide by the CPJ since 1992. Egyptian journalist Habiba Ahmad Abd Elaziz, 26, worked for Gulf News publication XPRESS newspaper, and her news organization said she had returned to her country while she was on leave. Egyptian reporter Ahmed Abdel Gawad, who was with Al-Akhbar state-run newspaper and was an editorial manager for the Muslim Brotherhood television satellite channel Misr 25, was shot in the back and killed. Rassd News Network (RNN) photojournalist Mosab El-Shami was also killed. Among the journalists most seriously injured were Al-Watan editor Tariq Abbas, who was shot in the face, and Al-Masry Al-Youm photojournalist Alaa al-Qamhawy, who was shot in the foot. Among the arrested journalists were Al-Jazeera journalist Abdallah Al-Shami and Al Jazeera Media Network's Mubasher Misr photographers Emad Eddin Al-Sayed and Abdulrahman Al-Mowahhed-Bellah, and Freedom and Justice Party (Egypt) (Al-Hurrya wa Al-Adala) / Misr 25 journalist Radwa Al-Selawi. Previously during the 2013 political violence in Egypt, photojournalist Ahmed Assem el-Senousy was killed on 8 July 2013 as a result of sniper fire, while covering a protest. In total, five journalists were killed since political violence erupted after the military coup in 2013.

The United Nations said about the attack on protesters that there had been "serious violations of human rights law", including the killing of journalists, after UNESCO's Director-General Irina Bokova had already previously condemned the killing earlier of journalist el-Senousy in July. The International Press Institute demanded that Egypt be held responsible for violations of journalists' rights and the Egyptian military's targeting of the press corps.

Kenya

 * Bernard Wesonga, of Mombasa, was found dead in his home 31 March after being threatened for a story about illegal fertilizer shipments.
 * John Driftmeir, a Canadian, was killed in a plane accident in Kenya while collecting video for the show Dangerous Flights.

Central African Republic
Editor's Note: The following text was written and saved and then transferred to the main article on 19 January 2013.


 * Elisabeth Blanche Olofio, a radio journalist for Radio Bé-Oko, was killed by the Séléka Coalition, who attacked the station in Bambari, Central African Republic and another Radio Kaga in Kaga Bandoro on 7 January 2013.  Radio Bé-Oko is part of a larger network of apolitical radio stations operating in the Central African Republic, known as L’Association des Radios Communautaires de Centrafrique.  The international press freedom organization Reporters Without Borders based in France said it was concerned that the rebel attacks were taking their toll on the ability of radio stations to operate in the C.A.R. Just four days after her murder on January 11, the government of C.A.R. signed a ceasefire agreement with Séléka Coalition representatives. (Unesco condemned)

Nigeria

 * Ikechukwu Udendu, an editor of Anambra News, was shot Saturday, January 12, 2013, while picking up materials at a print shop at the Afor Nkpor Market in Onitsha, [[Anambra state|Anambra]. His brother is the publisher and editor-in-chief of the newspaper but did not know who would want to kill his brother. (Unesco condemned)

South Africa

 * At the presentation of BMW's new motorcycle, the R1200GS, for the media, British journalist Kevin Ash of the The Daily Telegraph died from an accident while testing the bike in difficult terrain.

Tanzania
(Unesco condemned)
 * Issa Ngumba, a radio reporter for Radio Kwizera who covered crime, was killed and discovered 8 January 2013 in the Kajuhuleta Forest, Tanzania.

The Seychelles

 * Rebecca Davidson was killed in a boating accident while reporting travel-related stories.

Brazil

 * Renato Machado Gonçalves of Radio Barra FM in Campos dos Goytacazes, Brazil was murdered by assailants who fled on motorcycles Tuesday, January 8, 2012.    (Unesco condemned)

Editor's Note: The following text was written for the article about Vladimir Herzog, director of journalism at TV Cultura, 26 January 2013 and updated 17 March 2013.


 * At the request of several religious and human rights groups, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which is part of the Organization of American States, will investigate the conflicting circumstances surrounding the death of Vladimir Herzog, according to a 23 January 2013 announcement.


 * A new death certificate was issued 37 years after Vladimir Herzog's death to indicate that he died "due to physical torture at the facilities of DOI-Codi in the 2nd Army in São Paulo." His previous certificate indicated a possible suicide.

Editor's Note: The following text was written for the article about journalist Valério Luiz de Oliveira 22 February 2013.


 * Seven month after the murder of Valério Luiz de Oliveira, Reporters Without Borders responded to what appeared to be progress in the investigation: Reporters Without Borders said. “While respecting the presumption of innocence, we welcome the progress in the police investigation. The grave security problems to which Brazilian journalists are exposed, especially at the local level, had an impact on Brazil’s ranking in the latest Reporters Without Borders press freedom index. But the efforts it often makes to combat impunity distinguish it from other countries in the region."


 * Mafaldo Bezerra Goes, a radio show host on FM Rio Jaguaribe was killed by weapons fire in Jaguaribe, Ceará, Brazil, on 22 February. (CPJ confirmed) (RSF determined) (Unesco condemned)


 * Rodrigo Neto de Faria, short for ((Rodrigo Neto de Faria]]), hosted the radio show "Plantão Policial" (Police Shift) for Rádio Vangarda AM/Radio Vanguardia, where he had spoken out against police corruption, and wrote for Vale do Aço. He received multiple threats and was later shot to death in Ipatinga, Brazil, on 8 March. (CPJ confirmed) (RSF determined)


 * Walgney Assis Carvalho a freelance journalist for Vale do Aço was shot dead April 14 behind a restaurant in Coronel Fabriciano, Brazil. (CPJ confirmed) (RSF determined) (Unesco condemned)


 * José Roberto Ornelas de Lemos, editor of Hora H., was gunned down in Nova Iguaçu. The Rio de Janeiro metro newspaper was known for its investigative reports on crime and corruption. (RSF determined)

Paraguay

 * Marcelino Vázquez, the radio station owner of Radio Sin Fronteras, was shot and killed 6 February in Pedro Juan Caballero, Paraguay. (RSF determined) (Unesco condemned)

Peru

 * Luis Choy (Luis Choy Yin Sandoval), a Peruvian photojournalists, was shot in front of his home 23 February in a targeted killing.  (Unesco condemned)

Ecuador

 * Fausto Valdiviezo was killed by a gunman while he was driving 11 April 2013. Valdiviezo was a journalist and TV presenter with almost 30 years of experience.

Colombia

 * A journalist in Colombia survived a contracted killing, police uncovered plans to kill two more and others have been threatened.

Yemen

 * Wagdy al-Shabi, a former journalist for the newspaper al-Ayyam, was killed by the military at his home in Aden, Yemen. The government initially announced that al-Shabi was a "media officer" for Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), before it pulled the statement.

Iran

 * The 2003 case of Zahra Kazemi will come before the Canadian Supreme Court who will decide about the legal rights of the family in suing a Iranian government over its failure to return the body of Kazemi to the family.

Iraq

 * On June 9, Iraqi journalist Zamel Gannam al Zoubaie was killed in Baghdad.

Israel/Palestine

 * Israeli newspapers are reporting on a UN Report that says that a baby of a stringer was killed in 2012 by Hamas rocket fire and not by Israeli rocket fire.

Mexico

 * Jaime Gonzalez Dominguez (Jaime Guadalupe González Domínguez), who was director for the online Ojinaga Noticias news site, was killed 5 March 2013 by a spray of 17 or 18 bullets while he was eating at a taco stand in the US-Mexican bordertown of Ojinaga, Chihuahua. His camera was taken by the attacker(s). After he was killed the news website went dark.   (RSF determined)


 * Photojournalist Miguel Ángel López Solana was granted political asylum in the United States in June after his father and brother, who also worked at Notiver in Veracruz were murdered along with his mother in June 2011.

Guatemala

 * Jaime Napoleón Jarquín Duarte, a 63-year-old journalist who had worked with Nuestro Diario for 3 years, was killed 20 March while with friends in the Ciudad Pedro de Alvarado section of Moyuta, Jutiapa department, Guatemala, a section of the city that he had advocated for city status. (RSF determined)


 * Luis Alberto Lemus, owner of Radio Stereo Café and Café TV and also vice president of the Association of Journalists Jutiapanecos (APJ), died from gunfire shots on 7 April in Jalpatagua, Jutiapa department, Guatemala (RSF determined)

Haiti

 * Jean Dominique of Radio Haiti was killed in 2000, and former President Rene Perval delivered closed door testimony about reopening the case in 2013.


 * Georges Henry Honorat, editor-in-chief at Haiti Progress and also a leader of the Popular National Party, was killed where he lived in the Delmas district of Port-au-Prince.

Russia

 * Mikhail Beketov died 8 April 2013 as a result of complications of brain damage from a beating he received in 2008.

Ireland
The Martin O'Hagan case dating back to his murder September 2001 won't go to trial, which allowed 8 alleged suspects to be freed.

Serbia
Editor's Note: The following text was written for the two linked journalists on 24 January 2013.


 * The Serbian government began a review in 24 January 2013 of several suspicious cases involving the alleged murders of journalists during the 1990s, including Dada Vujasinović, Slavko Ćuruvija, and Milan Pantic.

United States

 * John C. Kiriakou, a former CIA agent and whistleblower, was sentenced to 2 years and 6 months for talking to journalists about the CIA's dark sites, torture program, and torture of Abu Zubaydah.


 * US Drone policy and journalists :