GENEVA - With 140 journalists killed, 2023 was the deadliest year in ten years, the Press Emblem Campaign (PEC) announced in Geneva on Wednesday. Two-thirds of the victims were in the Middle East, with almost one killed every day in the last three months of the year in the Gaza Strip.

Of the 140 media workers killed in 28 countries, at least 81 have been killed in the Gaza Strip since 7 October. PEC condemns these indiscriminate strikes, which do not distinguish between civilians and Hamas fighters.

While it is difficult to verify whether journalists were intentionally targeted or not, the Israeli army has systematically destroyed the Palestinian media in Gaza by bombing their offices and facilities, said PEC President Blaise Lempen.

Foreign journalists were not allowed by the Israeli military to cover the bombing of Gaza and the slaughter of civilians mostly women and and children.

By region in 2023, the Middle East led the way with 64% of cases, or 90 deaths, followed by Latin America with 20, Asia with 12, Africa with 11, Europe with 4 and North America with 3.