News

December 11, 2025 - Vietnam -  Press-freedom group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has strongly condemned Vietnam’s latest legal crackdown on independent journalism, warning that new court rulings and prosecutions mark a significant escalation in the government’s long-running campaign to silence critical reporting. The organization says the measures further entrench Vietnam’s status as one of Asia’s most restrictive environments for media freedom. According to RSF, Vietnamese authorities have recently intensified their use of vaguely worded criminal provisions to target journalists, bloggers, and independent media contributors whose work falls outside state-controlled outlets. The latest cases involve the...

December 11, 2025 - Serbia -  A new report by press-freedom monitoring organizations has revealed a troubling pattern in Serbia: nearly half of all documented attacks on journalists were carried out by police officers, raising serious concerns about state accountability and the safety of media workers. The findings have sparked renewed alarm among journalists’ associations and human-rights groups, who warn that law enforcement — meant to protect reporters — is increasingly becoming a source of intimidation and violence. According to data compiled by the SafeJournalists network and reported by regional media, dozens of incidents involving...

December 10, 2025 - Iran/Iraq/Kurdistan -  Iranian security forces have arrested an Iraqi-Kurdish reporter and several members of his media crew while they were covering a cultural festival in Iranian Kurdistan, marking the latest instance of press repression in the Islamic Republic and raising fresh concerns from press-freedom groups. According to reports, the journalist — identified as Shawar “Shavo” Hama Rashid of Kurdish media outlet Rudaw — and his team were covering the Newroz cultural festival in the city of Sanandaj when they were approached by agents of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and...

December 10, 2025 - General -  New data from major press-freedom organisations portrays 2025 as one of the deadliest years on record for journalists worldwide, with more than 110 media workers killed and a sharp rise in attacks linked to hate, conflict, and diminishing legal protections. The figures, released by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF), highlight mounting dangers for journalists — particularly those covering wars, political unrest, and crime — and the urgent need for stronger protections and accountability. According to the IFJ’s annual tally, 111 journalists lost their...

December 10, 2025 - Turkey -  Türkiye’s First Lady has publicly denounced the repeated targeting of journalists in Gaza, calling the pattern of violence against media workers “systematic” and highlighting the courage of women reporters covering the conflict. At a panel event in Ankara focused on press freedom and women in journalism, Emine Erdoğan criticized the high number of attacks and fatalities journalists have suffered while reporting from Gaza. She characterized the assaults as “deliberate and coordinated efforts to silence crucial voices,” urging the international community to recognize the peril media workers face in the...

December 09, 2025 - General -  A United Nations agency has reported a concerning global increase in violence and harassment targeting women journalists and activists — much of it connected to online abuse — underscoring the expanding risks female media professionals face in both digital and physical spaces. The findings were released in a briefing that highlights how gender-based violence and digital hostility are converging to threaten not only individual women but the broader integrity of public debate and democratic participation. According to the report, attacks against women journalists, human-rights defenders, and civic activists have...

December 09, 2025 - Iran -  Iran has been identified as one of the world’s leading jailers of journalists, according to the 2025 annual press-freedom report by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), which highlights a broader global crackdown on independent media. The findings paint a grim picture of repression, arbitrary arrests, and judicial harassment that have made reporting in Iran increasingly perilous. RSF’s annual data shows that Iran ranks among the top 10 countries globally for imprisoning journalists, with 21 media workers currently behind bars and at least one journalist classified as forcibly disappeared. In addition...

December 09, 2025 - General - Gaza has been identified as the most lethal conflict zone for journalists in 2025, according to a new report by the press-freedom watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The organisation’s findings show that more journalists were killed covering the fighting in and around the besieged territory than in any other country or war zone this year, underscoring the extreme risks faced by media workers reporting from the frontlines. The RSF report — released on December 9 — highlights that the majority of fatal attacks on journalists occurred in Gaza, where...

December 09, 2025 - Peru - A veteran Peruvian journalist was murdered by unidentified gunmen in what authorities and press-freedom groups are calling a targeted killing linked to his reporting on corruption. The slaying of Juan Fernando Núñez Guevara has sparked national shock, intensified fears for media safety in Peru, and drawn warnings from international organizations that attacks on journalists may be escalating. Núñez — a seasoned reporter known for his in-depth investigations into local government corruption, illegal mining, and alleged criminal networks — was shot dead by hitmen riding a motorcycle as he left...

December 09, 2025 - Tanzania -  Intimidation, violence, and fear have closed the space for independent journalism in Tanzania following the disputed October 29, 2025, elections, according to human-rights organizations monitoring the situation. Reporters covering protests and unrest have faced deadly risks, arrest threats, and a chilling atmosphere that press-freedom advocates say is undermining basic rights. According to interviews with Tanzanian journalists, many are now avoiding reporting on politically sensitive topics due to fears of retaliation, including possible charges of treason for questioning official narratives about the election and its aftermath. Journalists described a “climate...

December 08, 2025 - Philippines -  A local journalist-turned-municipal councilor was fatally stabbed Saturday morning in Surigao del Sur — prompting condemnation from media groups and a formal investigation by Philippine authorities. Officials have identified the victim as Gerry Campos, a broadcaster and serving councilor in Marihatag. He was attacked around 7 a.m. near a gasoline station in Barangay Sta. Cruz, while walking, was stabbed by a suspect who later fled the scene. Police responded quickly and arrested him later that day, during a pursuit operation. The national police leadership, including acting PNP chief Jose...

December 08, 2025 - Asia - As the world marked Human Rights Day 2025 on December 10, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) issued a major appeal to governments across Asia, calling for the release of journalists jailed for their reporting and for urgent reforms to protect press freedom. The appeal comes amid rising concern over the number of media workers detained in the region simply for doing their jobs. In its statement, CPJ highlighted that at least 106 journalists and media workers remain imprisoned across Asia, many facing long sentences under broad charges such...

December 07, 2025 - India -  Two major journalist organizations in Delhi — the Delhi Union of Journalists (DUJ) and the Indian Women Press Corps (IWPC) — were shaken when they received threatening emails claiming there were bombs planted at their offices. The alerts, which arrived in the morning hours of [date], triggered immediate security alerts, police intervention, and an atmosphere of fear among members. According to media reports, both DUJ and IWPC received near-identical emails warning of explosive devices inside their premises. Staff at both locations immediately notified authorities. The Delhi Police responded by...

December 07, 2025 - Palestine - A new report from the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS) shows that Israeli forces and illegal settlers committed a total of 57 documented violations and assaults against Palestinian journalists in Gaza and the occupied West Bank during November 2025 — underscoring a continuing campaign that media monitors describe as systematic. According to the PJS’s monthly breakdown, the incidents included two cases in which journalists were wounded by live ammunition or rubber-coated bullets while covering events in Tulkarem and Gaza. Beyond gunfire, the report lists 22 assaults by settlers — involving...

December 06, 2025 - China -  Beijing’s security arm in Hong Kong has delivered a stern warning to foreign media, summoning international press outlets and criticizing their reporting on the city’s deadly apartment fire — a move widely viewed as a crackdown on independent journalism just days before a major election. On December 6, the Office for Safeguarding National Security (OSNS) convened senior editors from several well-known foreign media organisations. During the meeting, OSNS officials accused foreign journalists of spreading “false information,” distorting facts about the fire response, and attempting to interfere in the upcoming...

December 06, 2025 - Serbia -  UN human-rights experts have issued a sharp rebuke to Serbia over a rising wave of violence, harassment, and intimidation targeting journalists, urging the government to take immediate action to protect media workers and uphold democratic freedoms. The intervention follows months of mounting concern from press-freedom groups, who say 2025 has seen one of the most hostile climates for Serbian journalists in recent years. According to the UN statement, the pattern of abuse has become “deeply entrenched,” ranging from physical assaults during protests to coordinated online threats, smear campaigns, property...

December 06, 2025 - Syria -  The Syrian Ministry of Information held a solemn ceremony on December 6, 2025, at the National Center for Visual Arts in Damascus to honor journalists who were killed during last year’s 2024 “Deterrence of Aggression” battle. The event was attended by Information Minister Hamza al‑Mustafa and Communications Minister Abdulsalam Haykal, who paid tribute to the fallen reporters — describing them as individuals who “carried cameras and pens like burning embers,” and whose work helped preserve a crucial record of the conflict. Minister al-Mustafa characterized the 2024 battle as a...

December 06, 2025 - Sudan -  With Sudan’s war pushing the country into a near-total media blackout, a new journalism fellowship has been launched to strengthen human-rights reporting and restore reliable information flows at a critical moment. The initiative, announced by Sudan Tribune, seeks to counter the collapse of independent media by equipping journalists inside and outside the country with resources, training, and a platform to document abuses that might otherwise go unreported. The program — part of a wider cross-border accountability network — will run from December 2025 to February 2026. Eight journalists will...

December 06, 2025 - USA -  A rising confrontation between the White House and the American press has triggered serious alarm among press-freedom advocates, who warn that recent actions signal a troubling erosion of democratic norms. According to new reporting, the administration’s public attacks on journalists — paired with growing restrictions on access — are reshaping the environment in which U.S. reporters operate, with consequences that extend far beyond political rhetoric. The latest concerns follow a series of incidents in which senior White House officials and the president himself publicly targeted specific journalists by name,...

December 05, 2025 - General -  In a powerful move to honour the legacy of her late husband, British climate journalist Dom Phillips, his widow Alessandra Sampaio is working to empower a new generation of Indigenous and environmental journalists to continue reporting from the world’s largest rainforest — helping turn tragedy into resistance and hope. Phillips and Indigenous expert Bruno Pereira were murdered in Brazil’s Amazon jungle in June 2022 while investigating illegal environmental destruction. Their deaths sparked global outrage and left a vacuum in critical reporting from remote regions long threatened by deforestation, illegal...

December 05, 2025 - Belarus -  Belarusian authorities have further tightened their hold on independent media by sentencing journalist Ihor Illiash to “extremist” status — a decision that will prevent him from working or engaging in public discourse and raises grave concerns among press-freedom advocates. The verdict follows an interview Illiash gave to a Ukrainian media outlet, during which he expressed views the Belarusian government deemed unacceptable. Under the regime’s expanding definitions of “extremism,” even journalistic interviews can now be filed under criminal-style allegations. As a result, Illiash will face severe restrictions on mobility, publication,...

December 05, 2025 - Myanmar -  Myanmar’s military authorities have released two prominent journalists as part of a broad political amnesty, a rare moment of relief amid an environment that remains one of the world’s most repressive for independent media. The pardons, announced just weeks before the country’s planned general election, have sparked cautious optimism among press-freedom advocates — tempered by warnings that the move does little to alter the junta’s longstanding hostility toward critical reporting. According to local media, veteran columnist Sithu Aung Myint and former BBC Media Action producer Htet Htet Khine were...

December 05, 2025 - Turkey -  Turkish authorities have arrested YouTube journalist Hasan Köksoy along with a man who recited a poem during one of his street interviews, intensifying concerns about the country’s shrinking space for free expression. The arrests were ordered after prosecutors claimed the poem — critical of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan — constituted both an “insult to the president” and “incitement to hatred,” charges frequently used against government critics. Köksoy, known online as “Self-Reporter,” regularly films spontaneous interviews in public spaces, offering everyday citizens a platform to voice their opinions on politics,...

December 04, 2025 - General - A coalition of U.S. lawmakers and leading human rights and press-freedom organizations is preparing to deliver one of the strongest public condemnations yet of Israel’s treatment of journalists in Gaza. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Amnesty International USA, and members of Congress will gather in Washington to address what they describe as a systematic and escalating pattern of attacks on media workers since the start of the war. The press conference, scheduled for December 5, reflects a deepening concern within the international community over the unprecedented toll on...

December 04, 2025 - France/Algeria -  Tensions between France and Algeria deepened this week after an Algerian appeals court upheld the seven-year prison sentence handed to French journalist Christophe Gleizes, prompting strong diplomatic criticism and renewed alarm from press-freedom organizations. Gleizes, a freelance reporter and sports writer known for his work with the French magazines So Foot and Society, was arrested in May 2024 while traveling in the Kabylia region. He had reportedly entered Algeria on a tourist visa to work on a story involving a major local football club, Jeunesse Sportive de Kabylie (JSK)....