48 journalists killed worldwide in 2016

Washington, Dec 21: At least 48 journalists have been killed this year, with Syria for the fifth consecutive year topping the chart for the most deadly country for journalism, a study showed.

The study, released by a Committee to Protect Journalists on Monday, showed that 14 journalists died in Syria alone, other more risky countries were also in the Middle East, Xinhua news agency reported on Tuesday.

Iraq, Yemen, Afghanistan, Somalia and Libya ranking second to sixth.

Of the 48 journalists who were killed with determined motive, 26 were killed in combat or crossfire, 18 were murdered and 3 were killed during dangerous assignments, and the report did not mention the situation of the rest of one.

An additional 27 journalists were registered as being killed by unknown motives.

The organisation started to keep record of journalist fatalities since 1992 and the deadliest year was 2012, when 74 journalists were killed.