War Correspondents

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Much to our shock, we learned about the tragic death of the well-respected war journalist Jeroen Oerlemans who was killed last Sunday 2nd of October in Sirte, Libya. Although Jeroen was wearing a bullet-proof vest, he was killed by an ISIS sniper who shot him in the side and hit him in his heart.

Only two weeks ago we had a meeting with Jeroen to discuss his participation in the first Dutch ‘War Correspondents Event’ to raise funds for, and increase awareness for RISC (Reporters Instructed in Saving Colleagues). RISC is a nonprofit organization and is dedicated to promoting the safety of (freelance) journalists in conflict zones. They provide subsidized first aid training and medical kits to journalists working in dangerous and remote areas to help mitigate the many physical threats they face in the field. http://risctraining.org. The War Correspondents series began in 2013 and is a benefit speaker series featuring correspondents who have worked and are working in conflict zones around the world. It has hosted some of the most prominent War Correspondents in the United States. The series are normally held in the tasting room of the Brooklyn Brewery in Brooklyn NY. Steve Hindy, Brooklyn Brewery founder and former Middle East correspondent is the host. His daughter Lily Hindy is Deputy Director of RIC.

Jeroen himself was a very proud and passionate  alumnus of RISC. He participated in the program in 2013, just a year after he was kidnapped in Northern Syria. Over the last few months Jeroen has been working with us on the first Dutch War Correspondents Event to be held on February 13, 2017 in Amsterdam. He shared his knowledge, network and experience and of course Jeroen was – with other well know correspondents and Steve Hindy – part of the panel.

With the sad news of Jeroen’s tragic death, organizing the first Dutch War Correspondents event and creating more awareness for RISC and with that on promoting safety in conflict zones has become even more important for us. We will make sure this first Dutch event would have made Jeroen proud.

Our thoughts are with Jeroen’s family and friends and above all his wife and children.