The IPI global network calls for urgent and renewed international attention to the case of American-British journalist Christopher Allen. We urge the international community to pressure South Sudanese authorities to conduct an independent and transparent investigation into Allen’s killing.
Christopher Allen, a freelance photojournalist, was killed by government forces on August 26, 2017 while documenting the civil war in South Sudan. He was the first foreign journalist to lose his life reporting on the conflict.
At the time of his death, Allen was embedded with a rebel force group known as SPLA-IO. He lived alongside them for roughly three weeks—an unprecedented duration for journalists covering the conflict—up until the rebels’ assault on Kaya, a highly strategic town near the Ugandan border.
As fighting escalated on August 26, Allen was shot by multiple rounds, including one to his head, in what rebel forces believe was a deliberately targeted attack by government troops. Rebel forces claimed Allen was easily identifiable as a journalist at the time of the attack. According to a rebel spokesperson, he wore a vest with the word “PRESS” large and visible, carried two cameras and no weapons. Photographic evidence following Allen’s death suggests his body was subjected to inhumane treatment constituting war crimes on the part of the government forces.
South Sudanese authorities disputed the rebels’ account of Allen’s death, arguing that there was no indication he was a journalist. Authorities denied Allen the status of civilian in the wake of his death, labelling him a “white rebel” who entered the country illegally and stating that anyone accompanying rebels, including journalists, would be treated as combatants.
A report on the killing published by the South Sudan Investigation Committee in March 2024 failed to achieve any measure of accountability for his death, concluding that Allen was killed accidentally amid cross-fire. The investigation, which was conducted without any involvement from Allen’s family, failed to address the horrific mistreatment of his body in the aftermath of his murder and blatantly ignored basic international legal frameworks. US officials publicly denounced the investigation, alongside Allen’s family and human rights and press freedom organizations.
“The killing of journalist Christopher Allen and the subsequent failure of the South Sudanese government to adequately investigate his death and bring his killers to justice demonstrates an alarming display of impunity on the part of authorities,” Amy Brouillette, IPI Director of Advocacy, said. “Journalists covering conflict must be free to do their jobs without fear of being targeted. We urgently call for a renewed investigation into Allen’s death that ensures accountability and compliance with international law.”