Prize for BBC reporter

A BBC news producer who was beaten and threatened with execution while he covered the conflict in Zaire has been awarded a top journalism prize.

Johannesburg-based Martin Turner won The Mohammed Amin Award for his "courage and commitment" in reporting from the war zone earlier this year.

The award, created by News World in association with Reuters, is presented to the person who has made the most outstanding contribution to broadcast journalism.

Mohammed Amin, a Reuters cameraman who took the first pictures of the Ethiopian famine in 1984, was killed last year in the Ethiopian Airline hijack disaster.

Patrick Stoddart, chairman of the News World conference of news gatherers, told Saturday's award ceremony in Berlin: "I am delighted to nominate Martin Turner, who won in the face of extremely tough competition."