A total of 97 journalists and 37 media support staffers have been killed in the line of duty since the war began on March 20, 2003. The media death toll in Iraq has steadily climbed since 2003, when 14 journalists — most of them reporters working for the international press— were killed. In 2004, 24 journalists were killed, followed by 23 deaths in 2005, and 32 deaths in 2006. The 32 deaths in 2006 was the largest annual death toll in a single country ever recorded by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
JOURNALISTS KILLED ON DUTY: 97
- By year:
- 2007: 4
- 2006: 32
- 2005: 23
- 2004: 24
- 2003: 14
- By nationality:
- Iraqi: 76
- European: 11
- Other Arab countries: 3
- United States: 2
- All other countries: 5
- By sex:
- Men: 89
- Women: 8
- By circumstance:
- Murder: 61
- Crossfire or other acts of war: 36
- Responsibility:
- Insurgent action: 71 (Includes crossfire, suicide bombings, and murders.)
- US fire: 14 (CPJ has not found evidence to conclude that US troops targeted journalists in these cases. While the cases are classified as crossfire, CPJ continues to investigate.)
- Iraqi armed forces, during US invasion: 3 (All are crossfire or acts of war.)
- Iraqi armed forces, post-US invasion: 1 (Crossfire)
- Source unconfirmed: 8
- By job:
- Photojournalists: 25 (Includes still photographers and camera operators.)
- Reporters and editors: 59
- Producers: 7
- Technicians: 6
- By location:
- Anbar province (Fallujah, Ramadi): 6
- Nineveh province (Mosul): 15
- Baghdad province: 56
- Saleheddin province (Samara): 4
- Basrah province: 3
- Diyala province (Baqubah): 3
- Arbil province: 6
- Karbala province: 1
- Najaf province: 1
- Sulaymaniya province: 1
- Unclear: 1
- By embedded status:
- Embedded: 6
- Non-Embedded or “unilateral”: 91
- Type of news organisation:
- Working for international news organisation: 39
- Working for Iraqi news organisation: 58
- Highest death tolls among news organisation:
- Iraq Media Network (includes Al-Iraqiya, its affiliates, and Sabah newspaper): 13
- Al-Arabiya: 6
- Al-Shaabiya: 5
- Reuters: 4
- Kurdistan TV 4
MEDIA SUPPORT WORKERS KILLED ON DUTY: 37
- By year:
- 2006: 15
- 2005: 3
- 2004: 17
- 2003: 2
- By nationality:
- Iraqi: 36
- Other (Lebanese): 1
- By sex:
- Men: 36
- Women: 1
- By circumstance:
- Murder: 34
- Crossfire or other acts of war: 3
- Responsibility:
- Insurgent action: 34 (Includes crossfire, suicide bombings, and murders)
- US fire: 2 (Includes crossfire)
- Source unconfirmed: 1
- By job:
- Interpreter/translator: 6
- Driver: 10
- Technical support staff: 6
- Security guard: 9
- Kitchen staff: 2
- Other: 4
- By location:
- Nineveh province (Mosul): 4
- Baghdad province: 27
- Saleheddin province: 1
- Atamim province (Kiruk): 1
- Basrah province: 1
- Diyala province (Baaqubah): 2
- Najaf province: 1
- Type of news organisation:
- Working for international news organisation: 16
- Working for Iraqi news organisation: 21
- Highest death tolls among news organisations:
- Iraq Media Network (includes Al-Iraqiya, its affiliates, and Sabah newspaper): 10
- Al-Shaabiya: 6
- Al-Arabiya: 5
JOURNALISTS KIDNAPPED: 45
- By year:
- 2007: 2
- 2006: 7
- 2005: 14
- 2004: 22
- By nationality:
- Iraqi: 12
- European: 18
- United States: 7
- All other countries: 8
- By sex:
- Men: 34
- Women: 10
- (One victim has not been identified)
- Result:
- Released: 33
- Murdered: 9
- Still held: 3
- By location:
- Anbar province (Fallujah, Ramadi): 4
- Nineveh province (Mosul, Tell Afar): 5
- Baghdad province: 28
- Basrah province: 3
- Dhi Qar (Nasariyah): 1
- Unclear: 4
- Type of news organisation:
- Working for international news organisation: 35
- Working for Iraqi news organisation: 10
