“I condemn the killing of Mubarak Al-Abadi and Abdulkarim Al-Jerbani,” the Director-General said. “Journalists must be allowed to carry out their vital work keeping the public informed. All have a legal duty to recognize the civilian status of media workers and ensure their safety, including in times of conflict, in keeping with the Geneva Conventions,” added Irina Bokova.

Mubarak Al-Abadi, a contributor to Al Jazeera television and Suhail TV, was killed on 5 August while covering fighting in the north of Yemen.

Abdulkarim Al-Jerbani, a photographer and reporter for several media in Yemen, was killed on 22 July while reporting on fighting in the northwest of the country.

The Director-General of UNESCO issues statements on the killing of media workers in line with Resolution 29 adopted by UNESCO Member States at the Organization’s General Conference of 1997, entitled “Condemnation of Violence against Journalists.” These statements are posted on a dedicated webpage, UNESCO condemns the killing of journalists.

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Media contact: Sylvie Coudray, s.coudray(at)unesco.org,  +33 (0)1 45 68 42 12

UNESCO is the United Nations agency with a mandate to defend freedom of expression and press freedom. Article 1 of its Constitution requires the Organization to “further universal respect for justice, for the rule of law and for the human rights and fundamental freedoms which are affirmed for the peoples of the world, without distinction of race, sex, language or religion, by the Charter of the United Nations.” To realize this the Organization is requested to “collaborate in the work of advancing the mutual knowledge and understanding of peoples, through all means of mass communication and to that end recommend such international agreements as may be necessary to promote the free flow of ideas by word and image…”