“Reporters Without Borders: 67 journalists killed in the world in a year
9 December 09:39
Over the past twelve months, 67 journalists have been killed in the line of duty around the world. The vast majority of them were victims of wars or criminal networks, the human rights organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said in its annual press freedom report published on Tuesday, December 9, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports citing DW.
Thus, from December 1, 2024, to December 1, 2025, about the same number of journalists were killed as in the same period of the previous year, human rights activists noted. 53 of the 67 journalists killed were victims of wars or criminal groups.
The Gaza Strip remains the most dangerous region, with 29 journalists killed. It is followed by Mexico (9 killed journalists). In addition, journalists face a particularly high risk in Ukraine, which continues to defend itself against a full-scale Russian invasion, as well as in Sudan and Syria.
Hundreds of reporters are imprisoned or missing
According to the organization’s report, 503 journalists in 62 countries are currently imprisoned, a figure slightly lower than last year. The majority of journalists are imprisoned in China (121), followed by Russia (48), Myanmar (47), Belarus (33), Vietnam (28) and Azerbaijan (25). Russia became the country with the highest number of arrested foreign journalists (26 Ukrainian reporters). Israel is in second place, with 20 Palestinian journalists in detention.
Another 135 media workers around the world are still missing, some of them for more than three decades. Such cases are registered in more than 100 countries, but most of them are in the Middle East and Latin America. According to RSF, a particularly large number of cases of disappearances of journalists have been recorded in Syria. Many media workers who disappeared during the rule of ousted dictator Bashar al-Assad have not been found yet.
RSF calls for the protection of journalists
“The high number of journalists killed is appalling. – said Anja Osterhaus, Executive Director of RSF Germany. – “This is the result of systematic violence perpetrated by armies, paramilitary groups and criminal networks.
According to her, every journalist killed or imprisoned is a warning.
“Those who attack journalists are depriving us all of the right to freely receive information,” she explained.
The human rights activist called on governments of all countries to take measures to protect journalists.
“When those who report critically on events have to fear for their freedom or even their lives, democracy around the world is at stake,” she added.
