As the world closes the chapter on 2025, a grim milestone stands out: this year has been the deadliest for journalists in recent memory, with Israel responsible for nearly half of all fatalities, according to a report released Tuesday by Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The Paris-based media freedom organization’s annual report lays bare a sobering reality for those who pursue the truth on the frontlines, especially in Gaza, where violence has claimed the lives of 29 Palestinian reporters at the hands of Israeli forces.
Globally, 67 journalists lost their lives in 2025—a slight uptick from the 66 killed in 2024, but a number that belies deeper trends and tragedies. RSF’s report, which covers the period from December 2024 through December 2025, reveals that Israeli forces accounted for 43 percent of these deaths, making Israel, as RSF puts it, “the worst enemy of journalists.” This is not a new development: since the outbreak of hostilities in Gaza in October 2023, nearly 220 journalists have died, and Israel has now topped the list of journalist killers for three consecutive years.
The most devastating single incident occurred on August 25, 2025, when a so-called “double-tap” airstrike hit a hospital in southern Gaza. The attack killed five journalists, including two contributors to major international news agencies—Reuters and the Associated Press. This strike not only underscored the dangers facing local reporters but also highlighted the extreme risks for those working with global outlets. According to RSF, at least 65 of the nearly 220 journalists killed in Gaza since October 2023 were targeted specifically because of their work or were killed while actively reporting.
Despite repeated pleas from international media organizations and press freedom advocates, foreign journalists remain largely barred from entering Gaza unless they join tightly controlled tours organized by the Israeli military. This restriction has drawn sharp criticism from watchdogs who argue that independent reporting is essential to understanding the realities on the ground. The lack of access, they say, only deepens the fog of war and makes accountability ever more elusive.
“Nearly half (43%) of the journalists slain in the past 12 months were killed in Gaza by Israeli armed forces,” RSF stated in its report, released Tuesday. The organization’s data paints a picture not only of violence but also of impunity, with other countries such as Ukraine, Sudan, and Mexico also emerging as perilous environments for journalists. In Mexico, nine reporters were killed in 2025—the highest toll there in at least three years—despite pledges from President Claudia Sheinbaum to improve protections for the press. War-torn Ukraine saw three journalists killed, while four lost their lives in Sudan, as per RSF’s findings.
Looking back over the past two decades, the number of journalists killed annually has fluctuated with the tides of conflict. The 2025 total, while deeply troubling, remains below the average of about 80 deaths per year since 2003 and is far lower than the peak of 142 journalist fatalities recorded in 2012, a year marked by the brutal escalation of the Syrian civil war. Still, the persistent dangers faced by reporters in conflict zones—and the apparent targeting of those who seek to inform—remain a source of international concern.
RSF’s report also shines a harsh light on the plight of journalists behind bars. As of December 1, 2025, a staggering 503 journalists were detained in 47 countries. China remains the world’s largest jailer of journalists, holding 121 individuals. Russia follows with 48—remarkably, 26 of whom are foreign journalists, mostly Ukrainian. Myanmar comes next with 47 imprisoned journalists. Israel, too, features prominently on this grim list, with 20 Palestinian journalists incarcerated, 16 of whom were arrested in Gaza and the West Bank over the past two years.
“Russia now occupies the second place on the grim podium of the world’s largest prisons for journalists, with 48 news professionals behind bars as of 1 December 2025, 26 of whom are Ukrainian,” RSF reported. “After Russia, Israel is the second country to imprison the largest number of foreign journalists. As of 1 December 2025, 20 Palestinian journalists are behind Israeli bars, 16 of whom were arrested over the past two years in Gaza and the West Bank.”
The risks facing journalists extend beyond death and detention. According to RSF, 135 journalists are currently missing in 37 countries, some for more than 30 years. The problem is especially acute in Mexico (28 missing) and Syria (37 missing), where violence and instability have made reporting a life-threatening endeavor. The situation is no less dire in parts of Asia. Countries such as Afghanistan, North Korea, Sri Lanka, China, Nepal, Cambodia, India, Bangladesh, Laos, the Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar, and Hong Kong are all cited by RSF as places where press freedom is in jeopardy and journalists face harassment, arrest, or worse.
The report goes on to highlight the broader context of media repression across the globe. In the former Soviet bloc, for example, journalists have been targeted with increasing regularity. In Georgia, the government’s authoritarian tactics led to the January arrest of journalist Mzia Amaghlobeli, while in Azerbaijan, 25 journalists are currently imprisoned. These developments, according to RSF, illustrate the “serious threats facing press freedom across the former Soviet bloc.”
Perhaps most chilling is the sense of normalization that comes with these numbers. While the 2025 death toll is lower than in some previous years, the persistence of violence, imprisonment, and disappearances signals a systemic threat to the ability of journalists to work safely. The RSF report, backed by data from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), also notes that if all media workers are counted, the number of those killed this year rises to 122.
Even as the world’s attention is drawn to high-profile conflicts, the day-to-day dangers faced by journalists—whether in war zones, under repressive regimes, or amid organized crime—continue unabated. The international community, media organizations, and press freedom advocates are left grappling with how to protect those who risk their lives to keep the public informed.
Against this backdrop, the RSF report serves as a stark reminder that journalism remains a perilous profession in many corners of the globe. The hope, for many, is that shedding light on these dangers will spur action to safeguard reporters and uphold the fundamental right to free and independent information. For now, however, the toll of 2025 stands as a testament to the enduring risks—and the courage—of those who refuse to be silenced.
