Iraq is the most dangerous place for journalists, according to a comprehensive report compiling data on journalists who have been killed in the past 15 years.
The report, drawn up by the Washington-based Committee for the Protection of Journalists (CPJ) says that 580 journalists have been killed in their line of work worldwide since 1992.
In nearly a quarter of all murder cases, political groups armed and allied against a government are suspected of killing the journalists, the report said.
“Nowhere is that more evident than in Iraq, where insurgent groups are believed to have murdered more than 50 journalists.”
More than half the deaths of journalists in Iraq have been murders, and the majority of victims Iraqi, the report said.
The study also found that none of the 14 journalists killed in Iraq by United States forces were killed deliberately. However, it also found that the U.S. Army failed to fully investigate the killings.
Worldwide, the study found that seven out of every 10 journalists killed are targeted in retaliation for their reporting and hunted down to be murdered. Even in war zones, the analysis shows murder as the leading cause of death.
“Government and military officials are suspected of plotting, ordering, or carrying out more than a quarter of journalist murders over the past 15 years,” the study said.