Mordad 17 in the Iranian calendar corresponding with August 7 this year has been designated as Journalist Day in Iran to commemorate the martyrdom of Iranian journalist Mahmoud Saremi who was martyred along with eight members of the Consulate General of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Afghanistan on August 8, 1988.
August 8 in Iran is the day of commemoration of journalists who are always at the forefront of public awareness in various cultural, artistic, social, religious, economic, political, and sports fields.
The IFJ, which published an initial list of journalists killed ahead of UN Human Rights Day on 8 December documenting 94 killings, says the latest increase is the result of additional deaths in the Gaza war as well as other killings being made known to the federation.
Today our thoughts go out to journalists’ families and our colleagues in world newsrooms who are mourning the deaths of colleagues killed for simply doing their jobs.
The deadly figures from this year illustrate how badly we need an internationally binding instrument forcing states to adopt key mechanisms to protect journalists’ safety and independence,” said IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger.
This year, 68% of journalists and media workers worldwide have been killed in the Gaza conflict, the Federation records.