Berlin : A total of 66 journalists have been killed while performing their duties across the world this year, according to a report released Tuesday by the Paris-based press freedom watchdog, Reporters Without Borders (RWB).
Syria, where 15 journalists have been murdered, remains the most dangerous country to work in for the second year in a row. Seven reporters died when covering events during the Middle East conflict, while six others were killed in Ukraine and four each in Iraq and Libya.
Similarly, in India in May this year, a journalist, Tarun Kumar Acharya, was killed and in Pakistan two journalists — Irashad Mastoi and Abdul Rasool — met a similar fate in August, the report added.
The number of deaths this year is 7 percent lesser than in 2013, when 71 journalists were killed.
Meanwhile, the number of those kidnapped during journalistic activities has been on the rise. A total of 119 reporters were abducted this year around the world, with most cases reported in Ukraine (33), followed by Libya (29), Syria (27) and Iraq (20).
This figure is 37 percent higher than last year, when a total of 87 journalists were abducted.
The report says 178 journalists have been sentenced in 2014 due to their professional activities. A total of 29 reporters are serving jail terms in China, 28 in Eritrea, 19 in Iran, 16 in Egypt and 13 in Syria.
The report notes that although the fatalities among journalists have decreased, some violent action against them, including the recent release of videos by the Islamic State (IS) radical group showing beheading scenes, have given a different shape to attacks on journalists.