PEN Sydney strongly condemns the assassination of two female journalists in Iraqi Kurdistan
International media outlets reported on 23 August that two Kurdish female journalists were killed in a drone attack in Said Sadiq, Sulaymaniyah province, in the Kurdistan region in northern Iraq. Gulistan Tara and Hero Bahadin were killed in the attack and six more were injured. They all worked for the Kurdish media production company CHATR. Local authorities attributed responsibility for the killing to the Turkish government. It was also reported two days later that the Turkish defence ministry had admitted the attack, and implicitly accepted responsibility for the journalists’ assassination.
There was strong and immediate condemnation of the killings by media and human rights organisations around the world. Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO, deplored the killings and called for a thorough investigation. “Journalists and media professionals must be protected as civilians in situations of conflict, in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2222/2015” said Azoulay.
The National Union of Journalists (NJU) in the United Kingdom and the International Federation of Journalist (IFJ) issued a joint statement condemning the killing of Gulistan Tara and Hero Bahadin and urging both Turkish and Iraqi governments “to launch an immediate investigation ensuring perpetrators responsible are held accountable”.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said it was “deeply saddened by the tragic August 23 drone strike that killed two journalists and injured a third in Iraqi Kurdistan” and demanded that Turkish authorities swiftly investigate the attack and determine if the reporting team was targeted for their work.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) labelled the killing of the two journalists a “shocking crime”. Jonathan Dagher, Head of RSF’s Middle East desk said the Turkish authorities “must be held to account”.
The Turkish government has a prolonged history of attacks on journalist, writers, and activists. Freedom of expression has been suppressed, writers, journalists and intellectuals have been arrested, tortured and killed, and tens of media outlets shut down.
PEN Sydney strongly condemns the assassination of journalists Hero Bahadin and Gulistan Tara, and adds its voice to international outrage at the Turkish government’s attacks on freedom of expression and on writers, journalists and activists both in Turkey and abroad. The Turkish government must be held accountable, and justice delivered to the families of Hero Bahadin, Gulistan Tara, and all writers and journalists who have fallen victim to the brutal suppression of their human rights by the Turkish government.