by Felix Richter, Statista.com
After a noticeable lull in the mid-1990s, the number of journalists being killed around the world has gradually risen since 2001. Many of these deaths can be attributed to numerous post 9/11 conflicts including the invasion of Iraq, where 32 journalists were killed in 2007 alone.
By 2011, the Arab Spring was in full swing, and unrest in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya claimed more lives of reporters. Acclaimed international photographer Tim Hetherington and his colleague, Chris Hondros, were among the high profile fatalities in 2011, killed in Misrata during the Libyan civil war.
By 2012, Syria had become the most dangerous country in the world for journalists by a considerable distance. The bloody struggle between various rebel groups and Assad’s military machine claimed the lives of 28 journalists during the year. Award winning reporter Marie Colvin was among those killed in Syria in 2012, perishing alongside French photojournalist Rémi Ochlik in Homs.
Piracy and a lack of a stable government made Somalia the world’s second most dangerous location for the media in 2012. Endemic violence carried out by militias including Al-Shebaab ensured Somalia experienced an especially grim year, with 12 journalists dying in the country.
Unrest in Pakistan propelled it to third on the list of the world’s most dangerous countries in 2012, with Brazil and India coming fourth and fifth respectively. Drug smuggling between Brazil and Paraguay has been blamed for several deaths along the border between the two nations, and reporting remains extremely dangerous.
After a disastrous 2012, where 103 members of the press lost their lives across the globe, media outlets are hoping 2013 will prove different. However, with conflicts still raging in Syria, Afghanistan and countless other locations around the world, these grim statistics are showing absolutely no signs of improvement.
This chart shows the countries where the highest number of journalists were killed in 2012
source: http://www.statista.com/markets/14/topic/112/radio-tv-film/chart/1181/deadliest-countries-for-journalists/
