In 2022-2023, one journalist was killed every four days, most cases went unpunished: UN | Press Freedom News

According to the United Nations, killings of journalists worldwide rose sharply in 2022-23 compared to the previous two years, with most cases remaining unsolved.

On average, one journalist is killed every four days, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) said in a report published on Saturday.

The number of journalists killed on the job rose by 38 percent, with 162 deaths, the report said, calling the increase “alarming.”

“In 2022 and 2023, a journalist was killed every four days simply for carrying out his vital task of pursuing the truth,” UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay said in a statement.

She called on countries to “do more to ensure these crimes never go unpunished.”

Saturday is the United Nations-recognized International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists.

The most murders occurred in Latin America and the Caribbean, with 61 over the two years, while North America and Western Europe were the world's least deadly region for journalists, with six murders.

For the first time since 2017, the majority of journalists were killed in conflict zones in 2023, with 44 deaths making up 59 percent of the year's total – a shift from years-long declines in conflict-related deaths.

In 2022-23, 86 percent of those killed while reporting on conflict were local journalists, the report said.

In 2023, Palestine recorded the highest number of cases: 24 journalists died at work.

While the report does not take into account deaths in 2024, the number of journalists killed in Gaza, Israel and Lebanon has jumped to over 135 since October last year, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Journalists faced unprecedented danger while reporting on Israel's wars in Gaza and Lebanon.

Israeli authorities have repeatedly killed and threatened Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza, accusing them of being Hamas members. The network has denied and condemned the claims.

This week, Al Jazeera Media Network condemned the “systematic attacks” on journalists in the Palestinian territory and region, saying the attacks were “a calculated campaign to silence those who dare to face the reality of war and devastation.” to document”.

According to the UNESCO report, other media workers were targeted for reporting on organized crime, corruption or covering public demonstrations.

Among the journalists killed in 2022-23, 14 were women – nine percent of all journalists – and at least five were between the ages of 15 and 24.

impunity

The report highlighted impunity surrounding the killings of journalists, as 85 percent of cases identified by UNESCO since 2006 are still unsolved or abandoned, according to individual country responses.

This represented some improvement over the non-resolution rate of 89 percent in 2018 and 95 percent in 2012.

But of the 75 countries the UN agency contacted for updates on open cases, 17 did not respond at all and nine simply confirmed the request.

Even in the 210 cases in which murders of journalists were solved, the average time spent solving them was four years.

“Justice delayed is justice denied,” the report’s authors wrote.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday called on governments to take “urgent action” to protect journalists and investigate and prosecute crimes against media workers worldwide.

“Impunity leads to further violence,” Guterres said in a post on the social media platform X.