On Friday 23 August, a car carrying a group of media personnel from Sterk TV, owned by the Chatr Media Company, was hit, while on a reporting assignment, by an alleged Turkish drone attack on the road connecting Sulaymaniyah city and Said Sadiq district. The Chatr Media Company is licensed by the Kurdistan Regional Government.
The drone strike killed two women journalists, Gulistan Tara and Hero Bahadin, and six others. Their colleague, journalist Rêbîn Bekir, was injured in the attack.
This is not the first incident of drone attacks targeting journalists in the Kurdistan region. On 8 July, a vehicle carrying Çira TV media crew was bombed by a drone in Sinjar, northern Iraq. Reporter Murad Mirza Ibrahim was among the casualties, sustaining serious injuries which led to his death three days later. His colleague, woman journalist Mydia Hussen, was injured in the same attack.
The Kurdistan Journalists Syndicate of Sulaymaniyah Branch strongly condemns this crime, which led to the death of Gulistan Tara and Hero Bahadin and, as a result of which, the journalist Rêbîn Beki was injured. "We call on both the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Iraqi government to deploy maximum efforts, both through diplomatic or other means available, to put pressure on the Turkish government to prevent such violations committed by the Turkish army against journalists and civilians."
The IFJ is calling on the authorities of both countries to conduct prompt investigations into the killings of the two journalists and bring the perpetrators to justice. IFJ Secretary General Anthony Bellanger said: "The killing of the two journalists in Sulaymaniyah reflects the extreme dangers faced by journalists working in conflict zones and highlights the urgent need for immediate measures to ensure their safety and hold those responsible for these crimes accountable. It is hoped that this tragic incident will increase international awareness of the risks that journalists face and lead to efforts to provide them with the necessary protection.”