French reported killed in Syria

The first Western journalist has been killed in Syria on January 11, extending the list of media staff who gave life in reporting the events of the Arab spring in the last months. A France 2 channel reporter, Gilles Jacquier was reporting from the city of Homs, embedded to a government authorized group covering a pro-Assad manifestation. According to the Syrian official version, Jacquier was hit by a RPG launched by a protest group that was targeting Assad supporters, and the French reporter died on the spot. Doubts about the government reconstruction of the events have been erased by Syrian opposition groups and also international human rights associations. For sure, if the Syrian government would demonstrate that the situation was under its control, the attempt failed, as Guardian journalist Ian Black commented. While the situation in Syria is rapidly deteriorating and civil population is increasingly suffering the conflict escalation between different factions, journalists and reporters are paying a high price for covering the developments in the region.