Cliff Notes – Peruvian journalist gunned down by hitmen in Amazon
- Raul Celis Lopez, a 70-year-old journalist, was shot in the head in Iquitos while en route to work, indicating a targeted assassination.
- His extensive career included reporting on corruption and gang violence in the region, with the Inter American Press Association condemning the killing and urging prompt investigations.
Peruvian journalist gunned down by hitmen in Amazon
Peruvian journalist Raul Celis Lopez has been shot in the head by two unidentified men on a motorbike as he was heading to work in Iquitos by motorbike taxi on Wednesday.
Lopez had reported from Iquitos, deep in the Peruvian Amazon, for more than three decades.
The 70-year-old radio host had regularly discussed corruption and the violence of the armed gangs that plague Iquitos on his daily current affairs program.
“None of his personal belongings were taken, a strong indication that this was a targeted execution,” Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said in a statement on Wednesday.
Condemnation of killing
Press freedom organizations were quick to condemn the killing.
The Inter American Press Association lamented the murder of a journalist “known for his denunciations of corruption, extortion, and crime in the region.”
“We are deeply alarmed by the upsurge in violence against journalists in Peru,” the president of the Inter American Press Association, Jose Roberto Dutriz, said in a statement.
The National Association of Journalists of Peru demanded a “prompt and rigorous” investigation of Lopez’s death.
RSF called Lopez’s death a “tragic wake-up call.”
“Journalists reporting on the social, political and environmental realities of the Amazon are being left without protection,” the RSF said in its statement.
Second killing of reporter this year
Lopez’s killing is the second such murder this year.
In January, the owner of a regional TV channel, Gaston Medina, was shot and killed as he was leaving his house in the south-central city of Ica.
Medina had also reported on Peru’s extortion epidemic.
Peru is experiencing an unprecedented wave of racketeering and gang violence, leading authorities to declare a state of emergency in several parts of the country.
At the same time, the Latin American country has seen a worrying decline in its media freedom, sliding to 130th place out of 180 countries on RSF’s 2025 Press Freedom Index.
That’s a fall of 53 positions since 2022.
Sources
Peruvian journalist gunned down by hitmen in Amazon – Yahoo News UK
Peru: RSF condemns the murder of Journalist Raúl Celis López and calls for urgent measures to protect journalism in the Amazon – Reporters sans frontières
Peruvian journalist killed by hitmen, second this year – Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS)