CPJ: Five Journalists Killed in Sudan Attack

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, five broadcast journalists were killed over the weekend when gunmen ambushed a convoy in South Sudan.

The committee condemned the attack and called on government authorities to catch the culprit.

The five journalists were among 11 killed in the government convoy, which was on its way back from a visit with the families of individuals killed by gunmen in a Jan. 22 attack, CPJ was told by local journalists.

According to CPJ, which cites the local journalism union and daily newspaper, The Citizen, killed were Musa Mohamed, director of the state-run radio station Raja FM; Adam Juma, presenter/reporter for Raja FM; Raja FM reporters Dalia Marko and Randa George; and Boutros Martin, cameraman for the Western Bahr el Ghazal branch of South Sudan Television (SSTV).

"The murder of five journalists is a devastating attack on South Sudan's already beleaguered press corps," CPJ East Africa representative Tom Rhodes said in a statement. "We urge Western Bahr el Ghazal authorities to do their utmost to identify the perpetrators and bring them to justice, and to ensure journalists are allowed to carry out their duties safely."

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.