The Minister for Foreign Affairs has told the Dáil that every killing of a journalist represents an attack on democracy.
Speaking during Statements on the Role of Journalists in Conflicts, Simon Coveney said that "freedom of the press is a cornerstone of our democracy".
Figures from Reporters Without Borders provide "a grim background for today's debate", he added.
In the decade to 2020, 939 journalists and media workers were killed, with a further 50 killed last year, when more than 300 journalists were imprisoned.
He paid tribute to slain journalists Lyra McKee and Martin O'Hagan for their work in Northern Ireland, and Veronica Guerin, for her work documenting organised crime.
Minister Coveney also commended cameramen Simon Cumbers and Pierre Zakrzewski, both of whom were killed in the line of duty.
He said the UN has warned that journalists in Ukraine are being "targeted, tortured, kidnapped, attacked or killed", with nine having perished since Russia's illegal invasion began.
Praising her "tenacity" and "humanity", he again called for an independent investigation into the killing of Al Jazeera's Shireen Abu Akleh.
He repeated his condemnation of the "offensive" violence that marred her funeral in Jerusalem, saying it had compounded the trauma caused by her death.
The minister also said the Israeli government must now take "definitive" steps to establish the truth.
Mr Coveney warned that too often the murders of journalists are not investigated, leading to a further "chilling effect" on freedom of expression.
Female journalists "are targeted disproportionately by harassment and violence", he said.
He told the Dáil that Ireland was today hosting an event in New York for members of the UN Security Council to discuss this issue.
