A record number of journalists were killed worldwide last year, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) announced yesterday, adding that Israel was responsible for nearly 70 percent of the cases.
At least 124 journalists in 18 countries lost their lives in 2024, the deadliest year since the committee began tracking figures 30 years ago, CPJ stated.
The Israeli military was attributed with the deaths of 85 journalists reporting from Gaza and was accused of attempting to obstruct investigations, shifting responsibility onto journalists, and ignoring its obligation to punish those responsible for the killings.
When asked for comment, the Israeli military responded that it did not have enough information about the incidents and could not verify them.
“The Israeli military has never and will never intentionally target journalists,” the military stated.
The number of journalists killed in 2024 is significantly higher compared to previous years – 102 in 2023 and 69 in 2022, according to CPJ.
The previous record was in 2007, when 113 journalists lost their lives, nearly half of them in the Iraq war.
Sudan and Pakistan are the second deadliest countries for journalists in 2024, according to the committee’s data.
“These are the worst times for journalists since CPJ was founded,” said the committee’s director, Jodie Ginsberg, in a statement.
“The war in Gaza highlights the collapse of global norms for protecting journalists in conflict zones, but it is far from the only place where they are at risk,” she added.
