GENEVA, March 2: Twenty-six journalists have been killed on assignment since the start of this year, a sharp rise on the same period last year, an international journalists defence group said on Monday.

The Press Emblem Campaign, a non-governmental organisation seeking better protection for journalists in conflict areas, said the toll compared with 16 deaths recorded in January and February 2008.

“The killing of journalists is clearly linked with situations of internal conflict,” said the group’s secretary-general Blaise Lempen in a statement.

The toll included four killed in the Gaza Strip and four in Pakistan.

Two deaths were reported each in Iraq, Mexico, Nepal, Russia, Somalia, Sri Lanka and Venezuela, while the other deaths occurred in Colombia, Kenya, Madagascar and Philippines.

The Press Emblem Campaign – which recorded a total of 81 deaths among journalists worldwide in 2008 – called upon the UN Human Rights Council to tackle what it called “this global problem.”—AFP
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