Sri Lanka ranked 3rd deadliest place for journalists

More than 5,000 people have been killed since conflicts between govt troops and LTTE escalated in the end of 2005.

Sri Lanka has been ranked as the third deadliest place for journalists in 2007 by the World Association of Newspapers (WAN), a media report said Saturday.

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According to the Daily Mirror, the Paris-based association said six journalists were killed in Sri Lanka last year, while eight were killed in Somalia (ranked 2nd) and 44 in Iraq (ranked 1st).

Nearly 95 journalists and media workers were killed across the globe in 2007, with Iraq and other conflict zones accounting for more than two-thirds of the deaths, said the WAN. In 2006, 110 were killed, in 2005, 58 were killed while in 2004 and 2003, 72 and 53 were killed.

The Sri Lankan government said more than 5,000 people have been killed since conflicts between government troops and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) escalated in the end of 2005.

The WAN defends and promotes media freedom worldwide, and represents 18,000 newspapers.