Anadolu's 24th term war journalism training concludes in Ankara

By Aykut Karadag

ANKARA (AA) – The 24th term war journalism training organized by Türkiye's leading international news agency Anadolu in collaboration with the Police Academy and the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) concluded on Friday.

Twenty-four journalists, including 13 foreign journalists, received internationally recognized certificates at a ceremony in Ankara, Türkiye's capital.

The 12-day course aimed to train journalists to better cover news during war, disasters, and emergencies while also keeping themselves safe.

The training program run between Nov. 6 and Nov. 17 and included theoretical and practical classes.

Delivering a closing address, Anadolu Deputy Director General Oguz Enis Peru said war journalists perform critical tasks under hard conditions to inform the public accurately, prevent disinformation, and uncover the truth.

He stressed that war journalists not only convey information from combat zones but also expose war crimes, preventing the cover-up of inhumane and illegal interventions.

Peru also pointed out the remarks by Gilles Devers, a French lawyer advocating for Palestinian victims at the International Criminal Court, who evaluated photographs taken by Anadolu depicting Israel's war crimes as "perfect documents."

He said that the trainees experienced all the scenarios they may encounter in any war, conflict or earthquake during the training.

Ugur Tanyeli, a senior TIKA official, said that the training is one of the most significant examples of its kind globally and is the closest to the real-time conditions of war and conflict.

The official, who stressed the crucial role of journalists in conflict times, said that the challenging training provided in the program will facilitate journalists' work in the field.

Police Academy Vice President Fatih Inal said that wars are an inevitable reality of the world, and journalists are also part of this reality.

"All journalists and media workers staying healthy and alive is what we want. We are not only training journalists for wars. In fact, as I mentioned in the class, this program is about reporting under difficult conditions."