Shining a light on conflict: RT honors best war reporting with 2019 Khaled Alkhateb Memorial Awards

Heartfelt insights to living in a warzone and dramatic videos showing the impact of conflict are among the winners of this year’s Khaled Alkhateb Memorial Awards, launched in honor of the RT stringer killed in Syria.

The broadcaster founded the awards recognizing excellence in conflict journalism in the memory of RT Arabic contributor Khaled Alkhateb, who was killed at just 25 years of age while reporting from Homs, Syria on July 30, 2017. The war correspondent was struck by a mortar shell launched by Islamic State militants while conducting an interview on the frontline.

This year’s awards received entries from 25 countries, with the winners chosen by a panel of international experts on conflict reporting, including industry veteran Tom Wragg, lawyer and journalist Eva Golinger, RT International correspondent Maria Finoshina, and RT Arabic host Salam Musafir.

“The works we received shed light on conflicts that are taking place quite literally all around the world, from Latin America and Europe to Africa and Southeast Asia. Each entry is, in a way, a small step toward peace,” said RT deputy editor-in-chief Anna Belkina.

The winner of Best Video Journalism from a Conflict Zone: Short Form is Fausto Biloslavo, from Italy, for a series of reports from the Libyan capital focusing on the protracted standoff between the Government of National Accord (GNA) and the Libyan National Army (LNA). 

Top left: Kenneth R. Rosen; Bottom left: Amitabh P Revi; Center: Anton Stepanenko; Right: Fausto Biloslavo

Prizes for the Best Video Journalism from a Conflict Zone: Long Form award went to two journalists. India’s Amitabh P Revi, won for a video about the Syrian city of Palmyra, reduced to ruins by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) as efforts begin to restore the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Russian journalist Anton Stepanenko also took the prize for his work, ‘Raqqa. Life After War,’ about the conflict-ravaged Syrian city and the locals struggling to stay alive in the ghost city.

The winner of Best Written Journalism from a Conflict Zone is Kenneth R. Rosen from the US, for a series of publications shedding light on the border areas between Syria and Iraq which are divided by a wall erected in 2018 as a line of defense against IS.

The awards will be presented at a ceremony on October 2, during the RT Media Talk, ‘Covering Conflict: Dimensions, Risks And Responsibilities Of Journalism In The Hot Zone.’

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