UNESCO reports that attacks on journalists increased during the protests around the world

Violence against journalists covering protests around the world has increased dramatically, with the main perpetrators being police and security forces, UNESCO announced on Monday, as reported by Hina.

Between January and June, that UN agency recorded 21 protests where journalists were attacked, arrested or killed.

The attacks are part of a wider trend of police and security forces using excessive force over the past five years, the report said.

At least ten journalists were killed from 2015 to mid-2020, and 125 were attacked or arrested, according to the report covering 65 countries.

The murdered journalists worked in Syria, Mexico, Israel, Nicaragua, Northern Ireland, Nigeria and Iraq.

UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azule has called on governments to ensure that journalists can do their jobs without fear for their own safety.

"Journalists have a key role in reporting and informing citizens about protests," she said in a press release.

"We call on the international community and all relevant institutions to ensure that these fundamental rights are respected," Azule pointed out.

UNESCO says that the reasons for the protests are economic inequality, corruption, violation of political freedoms, growing authoritarianism, so some governments are not interested in objective reporting.

"The UN has expressed concern in several resolutions about the hostile rhetoric of political leaders against journalists," Azule said.