Two highly-respected Western war photojournalists were among at least five people killed on Wednesday in the rebel-held city of Misrata when they were hit by a rocket-propelled grenade, international news reports said. At least two other journalists were wounded in the attack.

Tim Hetherington, 41, was a British war photographer and filmmaker whose documentary “Restrepo,” about life with a group of U.S. Marines in Afghanistan, was nominated for an Academy Award this year. He was a contributing photographer for Vanity Fair. Chris Hondros, also 41, was an American photographer who worked for Getty Images. He was a Pulitzer-Prize-nominated photographer and a winner of the prestigious Robert Capa Gold Medal, according to his website.

Hetherington and Hondros were covering fighting between rebels and Qaddafi forces at the frontline in Misrata when they were hit, news reports said. The pair were rushed to the nearest hospital, but Hetherington was pronounced dead on arrival and Hondras died shortly afterwards, a CNN correspondent said.

British freelance photographer Guy Martin and freelance photographer Christopher Brown were wounded by shrapnel during the same battle, Human Rights Watch reported.

“We offer our condolences to those who knew Tim Hetherington and Chris Hondros,” said IPI Press Freedom Manager Anthony Mills. “It is the courage and perseverance of journalists like them that helps shine a spotlight on places to which most of us would never dare venture, and we thank them for having helped us to see the faces of people caught up in conflicts around the world, and to better understand the price of war.”

Hetherington and Hondros are the third and fourth journalists to be killed during the Libya conflict, respectively, according to the IPI Death Watch.

At least 12 local and foreign journalists are still in detention or missing in Libya.