A total of 135 US police officers were killed in the line of duty in 2016, the highest number in the past five years.
The number also marks a 10-percent increase from last year, according to data by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund (NLEOMF).
At least 64 of the fallen officers were shot dead, which is a 56-percent rise compared to the 41 officers, who were shot and killed last year.
At least 21 of the officers were killed in ambush style attacks, amid growing anti-police sentiments across the US due to their excessive use of force against minorities.
A separate report by the NLEOMF shows that ambush-style killings of US police forces have increased by 300 percent since last year.
In July, five officers in Dallas, Texas, and 10 days later, three officers in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, were fatally shot following the police fatal shootings of two black men in separate incidents.
Texas had the most officer deaths this year at 17 cops, followed…