Jean Hélène, a French correspondent for Radio France Internationale (RFI) was shot by a police man outside a police station in Abidjan on 21 October, while waiting for the release of opposition party activists who had been detained the previous week. Eyewitnesses reported that the policeman came into the station and told the senior police officer there was a “white man” outside. He was told the man was a journalist, and was expected. The policeman then left the building and a shot was heard soon afterwards. The cause of the shooting is not known.

Kloueu Gonzreu, a journalist for the state-owned Agence ivoirienne de press (AIP), was found in the western region of Toulépleu on 19 March. He had been missing since 11 January. An official explanation for his murdered has not been given, yet several sources claim he was arrested by Liberians fighting alongside pro-government forces. The Pro-governance newspaper Notre Pays had also recently accused Mr Gonzreu of favouring the rebels in the country’s civil conflict. Mr Gonzreu was a also part-time history and geography teacher and worked for the local branch of the Red Cross. His son, as well as two other Red Cross volunteers, also went missing around the time of his disappearance; all three bodies were found in January, prompting speculation Gonzreu had had been murdered as well.

Luiz Antonio Costa was shot at close range on 23 July in Sao Bernardo, a suburb of Sao Paulo, while working on a story for the weekly “Epoca” newspaper. The photojournalist had been covering the occupation of property owned by the car manufacturer Volkswagon, by members of a movement for homeless people. According to an eye-witness to the murder, the gunman allegedly tried to steal Costa’s camera and shot him when he resisted.

Nicanor Linhares Batista was shot dead by unidentified gunmen while recording his daily programme "Encontro Político" on 30 July. The gunmen reportedly shot Linhares several times at close-range before leaving the scene on a motorcycle. Linhares, a host for Rádio Vale do Jaguaribe, in the North-Eastern state of Ceará and the station’s owner, died on the way to hospital. A sound technician who worked for the station witnessed the murder. Local authorities are reportedly investigating whether the murder was a contract killing, but no motive has yet been determined. According to a Brazilian newspaper, Diário do Nordeste, Batista had received threats in the past.

Edgar Ribeiro Pereira de Oliveira, co-owner of weekly newspaper "Boca do Povo"

was killed in Campo Grande, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul on 9 June, after unidentified assailants fired 15 gunshots at him from their car. "Boca do Povo" is well known in the region for its reporting on official corruption, drug trafficking and organised crime. According to Valmir Messa, the officer in charge of the investigation, Pereira de Oliveira had not reported receiving any death threats prior to the attack.

William Soto Cheng was shot by two unknown assailants on 18 December while arriving at work in Puerto de Buenaventura, located in South Eastern Colombia. Soto, a journalist with more than 15 years experience in the business, hosted an opinion programme as well as two leisure programmes at the local television station, Telemar. The motive for his murder has yet to be determined, however, Soto had been receiving threats on the telephone since the end of October, which had reportedly led him to think about leaving Buenaventura. During the October 26 elections, the journalist had apparently reported that members of the police and military were accomplices in a series of irregularities in the tally of votes. When several criminal charges were issued against him, he retracted his comments and apologised.

Juan Carlos Benavides Arevalo died on 22 August when the vehicle in which he was travelling was fired on, allegedly for failing to stop at a checkpoint. It is believed the checkpoint, near the town of Puerto Caicedo, was guarded by members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Benavides hosted a programme for Manantial Estereo, a community radio station situated in the town of Sibundoy. He was on his way to cover a meeting between President Álvaro Uribe and regional leaders and was accompanied by number of other passengers, including some local politicians, when the incident took place.

Jaime Rengifo Revero was shot to death in Maicao, a city in northern Colombia on 29 April. The assassin, who checked into Rengifo’s hotel under an assumed name, shot the reporter five times before fleeing by motorcycle with an accomplice. Mr Rengifo was the owner of the El Guajiro publishing company and the director and host of "Periodistas en Accion", a morning programme on Olimpica radio station which focused on civic issues. Rengifo had also reportedly denounced criminals operating in the city. Before the journalist’s murder, graffiti appeared on the walls of the town hall, warning the journalist would be killed. A son of a radio station manager, Rengifo had worked as a journalist for more than 20 years. Local police have acknowledged the murder was likely related to his profession as a journalist and have launched an investigation into Rengifo’s death.

Guillermo Bravo was murdered in his home by an unidentified assailant in Neiva, south-western Colombia, on 28 April. A director of the economic analysis programme "Hechos y Cifras" on the television station, Alpevision, Bravo was working on the programme in his living room when he was shot. According to his son, Mr Bravo had received threats on a number of occasions. The most recent threat was made a month before his death by a hired assassin, who had warned the journalist to leave the region because he was going to be killed. According to his son, Bravo filed a complaint with the Neiva Security Administrative Department (DAS). The journalist had recently been investigating irregularities in connection with a contract for the distribution of alcohol. Bravo, a journalist for two decades, had also worked with the daily newspapers "La Republica" and "Tribuna del Sur", and in 1980 received the Simon Bolivar national journalism award. Bravo also ran for mayor and town councillor in the last municipal elections and reportedly had some affiliation with leftist political movements. The DAS has a launched an investigation to his murder.

Jose Emeterio Rivas, a director of "Las Fuerzas Rivas", a call-in programme on the radio station Calor Estereo, was shot and killed by unidentified assailants while leaving a restaurant in Barrancabermeja on 18 April. Rivas often discussed municipal corruption and security matters on the programme, and his strong views and commentary were seen by many as controversial. The recipient of numerous death threats, Rivas had been under the Interior and Justice Ministry’s protection programme for journalists since January 2001, and had been assigned a police officer as a bodyguard. Although he had requested full-time protection, he was not provided with protection on weekends. At the time of his death, his case was under discussion by the Risk Evaluation Committee, to determine whether the level of protection he was receiving was adequate.

Luis Eduardo Alfonso Parada, a programme host for Radio Meridiano-70, was fatally shot outside his offices in Arauca in the early hours of 18 March. Two unidentified gunmen were waiting for Mr Alfonso outside the station’s offices and fled the scene by motorcycle after the assault. This is not the first attack on an employee of the radio station. In 2002, Efrain Varela Noriega, the station’s owner was also shot and killed in an attack suspected to have been carried out by paramilitary gunmen. Varela had alerted listeners to the presence of paramilitary forces in the region only days before he was murdered. Alfonso had also been covering the conflict between leftist rebels and right-wing paramilitaries in the region as a freelance journalist for Colombia’s largest daily, El Tiempo. He criticised all sides of the conflict, but was particularly critical of the United Self-Defence Forces of Colombia (AUC) - frequently reporting in detail on their activity. The journalist had been threatened previously by the group. Following the murder of Varela, Alfonso fled to Bogota as he feared for his life. There he tried, unsuccessfully, to secure help from a government protection programme for journalists. In November 2002, Alfonso’s name also appeared on a list distributed in the town of Arauca by paramilitary fighters. The list threatened to kill those listed unless they "reformed". Investigating forces have yet to officially name the perpetrators of the murder.

Parmanand Goyal was shot by three unidentified assailants outside his home in Kaithal, Haryana, north of Delhi on 18 September. Goyal was a correspondent for the daily newspaper “Punjab Kesari” and district president of the Haryana Union of Journalists. According to newspaper reports, the three men were let into the house by the journalist’s son, who subsequently overheard them threatening his father to stop writing about a local political figure and the police. Goyal had been arrested on corruption charges in May and was released on bail earlier this month.

Parvaz Mohammed Sultan, owner and editor of the local news agency News and Feature Alliance, was shot in his home office in Srinagar by two unidentified assailants on 1 February. He was shot in the head and neck. After dragging himself to the street, he was taken to hospital by neighbours, where he died. Police blame Muslim militants for the killing. No group, however, has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Binod Sajana Chaudhary was shot at point-blank range by Nepalese security forces on 27 September, after having his identity card checked. He was accompanied by a Maoist activist at the time of the incident. Local security sources however, said that the journalist and the Maoist activist were killed in an armed clash. At the time of his death, Chaudhary was a reporter for the weekly “Nepalgunj Express”, located in the western district of Kailali.

Gyanendra Khadka, was murdered by Maoist rebels while attending a parent-teacher meeting a school in Jyamire, Nepal’s eastern Sindhupalchowk District on 7 September. Khadka was a correspondent for the government news agency Rastriya Samachar Samiti and part-time teacher. The Maoist rebels reportedly led the journalist to a nearby field, where he had his hands tied to a pole and his throat slit. No motive for the murder is yet known.

Amar Lama was killed by four unidentified gunmen on 27 July, in a town south of Kathmandu, after being abducted from his newspaper’s offices. According to eye-witnesses, the managing editor of the weekly newspaper “Tajakhabar”, escaped at one point, but following a street-chase he was re-caught by his assailants and shot at point blank. The motive for his murder remains unknown. Lama was a member of the Nepali Congress Party and had previously spent five years in prison, accused of murder.

Ameer Bux Barohi, was shot five times by unidentified gunmen in the town of Shikarpur on 3 October. Barohi was a reporter for Kawish, the largest Sindh-language daily newspaper in Pakistan’s Sindh Province. He had reportedly been arguing with the three men just prior to his shooting. The motive for the journalist’s slaying remains unclear, however, Barohi was known for reporting on sensitive local issues.

Fazal Wahab was shot dead by four armed men in Mingora on January 21. Wahab, an author frequently critical of radical Islamic clerics, had received death threats in the past and had informed police, yet he was not provided with any protection. Local police claim an inquiry into the murder has begun, yet Pakistan’s Human Rights Commission has reportedly stated that the police have taken no action to find Mr Wahab’s killers. The Commission has launched its own investigation into his murder.

Nelson Nadura was shot by two unidentified men in the town of Masbate on 2 December. He was killed shortly after leaving DYME radio station on motorcycle, where he hosted a regular programme “Opinion Publico”. No motive has yet been determined for his killing, however police reportedly said that Nadura may have been targeted because of past connections to the New People’s Army, a guerrilla organisation that has been waging a war with the government since 1969.

Juan “Jun” Pala was shot nine times by unidentified gunmen on motorcycle while he was walking home, accompanied by a bodyguard, in Davao City on 6 September. Pala, who hosted a show on DXGO radio station called “Isumbong Mo Kay Pala” (Tell Pala), had been repeatedly targeted prior to his death. In April of 2003, the journalist was wounded when shot at while riding in a taxi, and since the attack, had begun recording his programme from his home. The reasons for his murder are unclear, however Pala was known for his criticism against communist rebels, and in recent years, his radio show focused on exposing corruption among local politicians.

Rico Ramirez was found on the side of a road by police on 20 August in the town of San Francisco, province of Agusan del Sur. The journalist, a reporter for DXSF radio, was reportedly shot in the back by two gunmen, close to the radio station’s offices, as witnessed by the station’s manager. No motive has yet been determined, however, the journalist’s murder is suspected to have been linked to his recent criticism of local organised crime and drug traffickers.

Noel Villarante was shot by two unidentified gunmen at his home in the city of Santa Cruz, Laguna province on 19 August. Villarante, a radio journalist, was reportedly first shot at outside his home, but managed to escape into the house. When family members subsequently attempted to take the wounded journalist to hospital, they were prevented by another attack from the gunmen and Villarante was shot and killed at point blank range. The journalist, who worked for the local radio station DZJV as well as the local newspaper “Laguna Score”, had often criticised regional authorities for corruption and spoken out against illegal gambling.

Bonifacio Gregorio was shot three times in the head by an unidentified assailant outside his home in La Paz, on 8 July. Gregorio, a reporter for a the local weekly "Dyaryo Banat", was a former village chief and had worked for the local newspaper for three years. According to initial police investigations, the attack is believed to have been carried out by a professional assassin, who fled on foot after the assault. Gregorio was known for his criticism of La Paz mayor Dionisio Manuel for his alleged illegal activities. The mayor has denied any involvement in the journalist’s murder.

Apolinario "Polly" Pobeda, a radio presenter for "Who Are They?" on DWTI-AM in Lucena city, was murdered on his way to work early in the morning of 17 May. Shot seven times by two unidentified gunman while riding his motorcycle, Pobeda was rushed to hospital but pronounced dead on arrival. A vocal critic of corrupt municipal officials, local news sources suspect the journalist’s murder could have been politically motivated.

John Villanueva was ambushed by two unidentified gunmen on the evening of 28 April. The journalist, a radio announcer for DZGB radio station in Legaspi City, was returning home on his motorcycle when he was attacked just 200 metres from his home, in the town of Camalig. Villanueva died an hour later in hospital. No motive has yet been found. Local officials claim the journalist was suspected of supporting the country’s Communist guerrillas.

Alikhan Gulyev was shot twice in the back by an unidentified assailant while entering his apartment building in Moscow on 18 July. This was not the first attack on the journalist, a freelancer for the television station TV Tsenter and “Kommersant” newspaper. In March 2002, while living in the Russian republic of Ingushetia, unidentified assailants fired gunshots at his car. Before moving to Moscow, Gulyev had reported on political corruption in Ingushetia, and had also played a role in the disqualification of a presidential candidate in the republic’s 2002 elections.

Aleksey Sidorov, editor-in-chief of the newspaper, “Togliattinskoe Obozrenie”, was stabbed to death by two unidentified men near his home in the city of Togliatti, central Russia on 9 October. Prior to the attack, the newspaper had been investigating criminal groups connected to the largest car manufacturer in Russia, AutoVAZ. Sidorov had also been preparing a series articles on alleged incidents of theft carried out by members of the so-called ‘Volga criminal group’. Investigating authorities are reportedly considering Sidorov’s journalistic activities to have been a primary motive for his murder.

Dmitri Shvets, co-owner and managing director of the TV-21 station in Murmansk, was shot and killed while exiting his car in front of the station’s office on 18 April. An unidentified assailant fled the scene after firing 3 shots, leaving the gun behind. The motive for his murder has not yet been determined. TV-21 had recently broadcast criticism of the Murmansk municipal government and of candidates for the 2004 municipal elections. In addition to his work at TV-21,Shvets was a prominent businessman who owned shops and a night club in the city. He was also a political advisor to Regional Governor Yuri Evdokimov. Local authorities are launching an investigation into the murder.

Ahmed Shawkat was shot by an unknown gunman in Mosul in Northern Iraq on 28 October. Shawkat, who was editor of the Iraqi weekly “Bilah Ittijah” (Without Direction), was also a correspondent for Agence France-Presse. According to reports, the gunman and an accomplice followed the journalist to the roof of his office where they subsequently shot him. Shawkat’s daughter allegedly reported that her father had received threatening letters in the weeks prior to his murder, warning him to close his newspaper. Local police are investigating the murder.

Mazen Dana was killed by machine gun fire from a U.S tank while filming outside an Iraqi prison on 17 August. According to Dana’s soundman, the Reuters cameraman had asked for and received permission from U.S. troops in the area to film the prison, located in Abou Ghraib, near Baghdad. U.S. officials have said that the troops mistook the journalist’s camera for a rocket-propelled grenade launcher.

Jeremy Little died from injuries sustained after a rocket-propelled grenade hit the car in which he was travelling on 6 July. The attack, which took place in the town of Falluja, was reportedly carried out by Iraqi insurgents. Little, a television soundman for the American network NBC, was embedded with the US Third Infantry Division. He was flown to an American hospital in Germany, where he died after contracting an infection following surgery. An Australian citizen, Little had worked for the American news programme the Today show for six years before starting with NBC in May 2003.

Richard Wild was shot at point-blank range while standing amongst a crowd outside Iraq’s National History Museum in Baghdad on 5 July. The 24 year-old freelance journalist had arrived in Iraq two weeks prior to his death. This was his first time working abroad after having spent six months as a picture researcher at ITN news agency in London, England. The motive of his killing is as of yet unknown, as is the identity of his assailant.

Mario Podesta, a veteran Argentine free-lance journalist on assignment for the Argentine television station "America TV" was killed in a car accident on the highway between Amman, Jordan, and Baghdad, just 40 kilometres from the capital on 18 April. The accident was caused by the blow-out of a tire. The journalist was part of a convoy trying to reach Baghdad before nightfall. Podesta was killed instantly. There have been unconfirmed reports of gunfire in the vicinity just before the accident. A BBC translator was also killed in the accident.

Veronica Cabrera, an Argentine camerawoman on assignment for "America TV", was killed in a car accident on the highway between Amman, Jordan, and Baghdad, just 40 kilometres from the capital on 18 April. The accident was caused by the blow-out of a tire. The journalist was part of a convoy trying to reach Baghdad before nightfall. Cabrera died in hospital the following day from injuries sustained in the accident. There have been unconfirmed reports of gunfire in the vicinity just before the accident.

Taras Protsyuk, a Reuters cameraman, died when the hotel where he was staying was hit by a US tank shell on 8 April. The shell hit the 15th floor of the Palestine hotel, which lodges many foreign journalists in Baghdad. Protsyuk- a Ukrainian citizen - died in hospital. There are conflicting reports about the nature of the shelling. US military officials claim one of their tanks had fired on the hotel in response to incoming sniper and rocket fire. Other journalists in the building at the time of the shelling, have reportedly claimed to have heard no fire coming from the hotel.

Jose Couso, a Telecinco cameraman, died after the hotel where he was staying was hit by a US tank shell on 8 April. The shell hit the 15th floor of the Palestine hotel, which lodges many foreign journalists in Baghdad. Couso, a Spanish citizen, died in hospital. There are conflicting reports about the nature of the shelling. US military officials claim one of their tanks had fired on the hotel in response to incoming sniper and rocket fire. Other journalists in the building at the time of the shelling, have reportedly claimed to have heard no fire coming from the hotel.

Tareq Ayoub, an Al-Jazeera correspondent died when the al-Jazeera offices were hit by two American-fired missiles on 8 April. The Jordanian national was the station’s permanent correspondent in Amman, and was sent to Baghdad when the war broke out. The US military said the bombing was a mistake. Al Jazeera had reportedly provided explicit details of the location of the office to the Pentagon, and had also clearly demarcated the building by hanging a large banner outside with the word "TV" inscribed on it. Abu Dhabi television reported its Baghdad bureau as having also been hit by US bombing

Julio Anguita Parrado, a correspondent for Spain’s El Mundo newspaper died after coming under missile attack by Iraqi forces on 7 April. He was travelling with US forces when they came under attack.

Christian Liepig, a correspondent for the German weekly Focus, died after coming under missile attack by Iraqi forces on 7 April. He was travelling with US forces when they came under attack.

Michael Kelly was killed when the car he was travelling in overturned in a ditch while trying to avoid gunfire on 4 April. Kelly, an American journalist for the Washington Post and editor-at-large of current affairs magazine, Atlantic Monthly, was travelling with the 3rd Infantry Division at the time. A soldier was also killed in the incident. Kelly was a well known and outspoken conservative columnist who first made a name for himself as a freelancer covering the 1991 Gulf War.

Kaveh Golestan was killed by a landmine while exiting a vehicle near the town of Kifri 2 April. There were three other passengers in the car, one of whom, BBC Producer Stuart Hughes, was injured in the incident. Golestan was a prize winning freelance cameraman who worked out of the BBC Tehran bureau.

Terry Lloyd was killed by what is suspected to have been friendly gun-fire, after he and three other journalists were caught in crossfire while driving toward Basra in two civilian vehicles on 23 March. Two other media employees of the British television company, cameraman Fred Nerac and fixer Hussein Osman, are still missing. Mr Lloyd was the longest standing reporter for the news-station, and had recently celebrated his 20th anniversary with ITN. This was not Lloyd’s first visit to Iraq - in 1988 he exposed Saddam Hussein’s massacre of 5,000 Kurds in the town of Halabja in northern Iraq.

Paul Moran was killed after a suicide bombing near a checkpoint in North-eastern Iraq, in what appears to have been an attack aimed at PUK (Patriotic Union of Kurdistan) soldiers on 22 March. Moran, a freelance cameraman working on an assignment for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), was filming nearby and was killed instantly by the blast. According to eye-witness reports, the attack was carried about by a taxi driver who detonated his own vehicle. The PUK had recently wrested control of parts of the North-eastern region from Ansar Al-Islam, a group labelled by the American government as a terrorist organisation. The night before, Ansar Al-Islam strongholds had been the recipients of a bombing campaign. At least four other people were killed in the suicide bombing and another Australian journalist working for ABC was wounded in the attack.

James Miller, an award-winning British television cameraman, was shot and killed in the town of Rafah, Gaza Strip on 2 May. Mr Miller was filming a documentary on the life of Palestinian children under the intifada, and was, at the time of his death, filming Israeli soldiers demolishing a Palestinian house. Miller was best known for the award-winning documentary on life in Afghanistan under the Taliban, "Beneath the Veil". The shot reportedly came from the direction of Israeli soldiers on the scene. Footage of the incident shows Miller and two of his associates walking toward the Israeli soldiers while holding up a white flag. One of the trio was sporting a bullet proof vest with the word "TV" spelled out in fluorescent.

Nazih Darwazeh, a Palestinian freelance cameraman, was shot dead by Israeli forces in Nablus, West Bank, while filming clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinian youths on 21 April. Darwazeh, who was working for Palestinian television, was part of a group of journalists filming the clash. Television film of the incident shows he was wearing bright yellow sleeveless jacket clearly marked "press". According to eye witnesses, the Palestinian youths were throwing stones at the Israeli tank when shots broke out from the vehicle. A spokesperson for the army claimed the vehicle got stuck near the old city and a crowd of Palestinians began throwing stones and petrol bombs, prompting them to fire on the crowd.