BRUSSELS: A total of 65 journalists and media workers were killed worldwide in 2020, including nine in Pakistan, while doing their jobs, according to the International Federation of Journalists.
That is 17 more than in 2019, and the death toll is around the same level as in the 1990s, the federation said Friday as it published details of its annual report on killings.
The IFJ said the killings took place in 16 different countries during targeted attacks, bomb attacks and crossfire incidents.
A total of 2,680 journalists have been killed since the IFJ started keeping count in 1990.
“The ruthless reign of crime barons in Mexico, the violence of extremists in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Somalia, as well as the intolerance of hard-liners in India and the Philippines have contributed to the continued bloodshed in media,’’ said IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger.
For the fourth time in five years, Mexico topped the list of countries where the most journalists were killed, with 14 killings. It was followed by 10 deaths in Afghanistan; nine in Pakistan, eight in India, four each in the Philippines and Syria, and three each in Nigeria and Yemen. There were also killings in Iraq, Somalia, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Honduras, Paraguay, Russia and Sweden.
In addition to the deaths, the IFJ said at least 229 journalists were in prison across the world as of March 2021 because of their work. The federation said Turkey is “the biggest jailer of journalists in the world” — with at least 67 media workers in its cells. That was followed by 23 journalists detained in China, 20 in Egypt, and 16 in Eritrea.
‘’No democracy worthy of that name can jail messengers of freedom of expression,” Bellanger said.
65 media workers killed in 2020, including 9 in Pakistan — journalists’ group
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65 media workers killed in 2020, including 9 in Pakistan — journalists’ group
- That is 17 more than in 2019, death toll is around same level as in the 1990s, International Federation of Journalists says
- 14 killings in Mexico, 10 deaths in Afghanistan, nine in Pakistan, eight in India, four each in Philippines and Syria, and three each in Nigeria and Yemen
Italy to grant 10,500 work visas, waive entry requirement for Pakistani diplomats — ministry
- Interior minister meets Italian counterpart to review measures preventing illegal immigration
- Pakistan says it achieved a 47 percent drop in illegal immigration to European states in 2025
KARACHI: Italy has announced to grant 10,500 visas to Pakistani nationals to promote legal migration and exempt diplomatic passport holders from visa requirements, Pakistan’s interior ministry said on Wednesday.
The development took place during a meeting between Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and his Italian counterpart Matteo Piantedosi to review internal security relations and measures to prevent illegal immigration.
Pakistan intensified action against illegal migration in 2023 after hundreds of migrants, including many Pakistanis, drowned when an overcrowded vessel sank off the Greek town of Pylos, making it one of the deadliest boat disasters in the Mediterranean.
Authorities continue to target smuggling networks sending citizens abroad through dangerous routes, following heightened scrutiny at airports and a series of arrests involving forged documents.
“10,500 work visas will be issued for Pakistan’s skilled labor force to promote legal migration,” Piantedosi was quoted as saying by the ministry in its statement. “On the demand of Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, Pakistani diplomatic passport holders will be exempted from Italian visas.”
The ministry said the discussions also focused on strengthening cooperation to more effectively combat drug trafficking, human smuggling and militancy.
It quoted Naqvi as saying that strict airport and sea borders surveillance had helped reduce illegal immigration.
“The achievements of Pakistani institutions in preventing human trafficking and drugs are commendable,” the ministry quoted Piantedosi as saying. “We will increase mutual cooperation to promote legal migration.”
Pakistan said last year it had achieved a 47 percent drop in illegal immigration to Europe in 2025, with more than 1,700 human smugglers arrested as part of an expanded nationwide crackdown.
The country also announced in December plans to roll out an artificial intelligence-based immigration screening system in Islamabad to detect forged travel documents and prevent illegal departures.
Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency released a list of more than 100 of the country’s “most wanted” human smugglers in September while identifying major hubs of trafficking activity in the country.
