The Iraqi Journalists Union said in statement last month that 227 journalists and media staff have been killed since the invasion of Iraq in March 2003, with an additional 15 missing. The Union demanded that the Iraqi government and US forces "take necessary measures to protect journalists."

Reporters without Borders concurs with these figures, and reports that more than 90% of the dead are Iraqis who were murdered by death squads or insurgent groups. UNESCO also issued a statement expressing its concern about the rising number of journalists killed in Iraq,

Al-Alami, head of the Journalists Union, criticized the US forces for the raid they carried on the union's headquarters on Feb. 20. (General Federation of Iraqi Workers-GFIW, June 13)

See our last posts on Iraq and attacks on the press.