The Reporters without Borders international organization on December 17 released the annual report.

This year, the number of murders of journalists has decreased in the world, but the number of those arrested has increased.

So, 49 journalists were killed, 389 are under arrest 57 – taken hostage. Journalism is still a dangerous profession.

In the past 20 years, an average of 20 journalists have been killed annually.

In 2019, 17 journalists were killed in Syria, Yemen, and Afghanistan.

The number of arrested journalists increased by 12%. Almost half of them were in China, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

In Russia and Turkey, the persecution of critical journalists has reached unprecedented proportions.

In Azerbaijan, Belarus, and Central Asia, governments continue to tighten control over news and information.

Among Azerbaijani journalists whose health conditions are worrying, the report indicates Afgan Mukhtarli. He suffers from diabetes and hypertension. He went on a hunger strike in September, protesting pressure from his lawyer.

“Due to his health, he could not continue the action for a long time and still does not have access to serious medical examinations,” says RBG.