RSF 2025 Annual Report: A Global Overview of Attacks on Journalists

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has put out its yearly summary, and it paints a grim picture: there's been a major jump in violence and abuse aimed at journalists all over the world. RSF makes a key point: Journalists are not dying for journalism. They are being killed because of it.

The report, covering December 1, 2024, to December 1, 2025, shows just how risky it is to be a journalist today.

The Death Count: 67 Journalists Killed

In the time covered by the report, 67 journalists and media workers were killed because of their work.

About 79% of these deaths were caused by armed forces, paramilitary groups, and organized crime groups.

The war in Gaza was the worst place for journalists, with 43% of all journalist killings happening there. At least 29 Palestinian journalists were killed because of their jobs. RSF mentions that, since October 2023, the Israeli military is to blame for the deaths of around 220 journalists in Gaza.

Mexico is still the second most dangerous country for journalists, with nine killed. Criminal cartels and corrupt groups are the main source of this violence.

Sudan and Ukraine are still very risky places because of ongoing conflicts. Four journalists died in Sudan due to ongoing fighting, and three were killed in Ukraine by Russian military attacks. The report notes that only two foreign journalists were killed this year, which tells us that most victims are local reporters targeted in their own countries.

Imprisonment and Disappearances

As of December 1, 2025, 503 journalists are in jail in 47 countries. RSF says this is a worrying sign that the press is being pressured worldwide.

China has the most journalists in jail, with 121. Russia is next with 48 (including 26 Ukrainian journalists), followed by Myanmar with 47.

Israel is now one of the top 10 countries for jailing journalists, holding 20 Palestinian journalists. Sixteen of them were arrested in the last two years in Gaza and the West Bank.

The report also talks about how many journalists are missing or have been kidnapped:

135 journalists are currently missing in 37 countries. Most of these disappearances (72%) are in the Middle East and Latin America, with Syria (37) and Mexico (28) leading the way.

20 journalists are being held hostage around the world. This includes seven journalists taken by the Houthis in Yemen and others still held by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group in Syria.

Focus on Azerbaijan and the Post-Soviet Area

RSF says media freedom in Azerbaijan is in critical condition. This is part of a bigger problem of press freedom being threatened in the former Soviet countries, including Russia, Georgia, and Belarus.

Azerbaijan has 25 independent journalists and media workers in jail. A concerning number of them (20) were arrested in the past year, showing a major crackdown.

RSF brought up the case of Abzas Media editor Sevinj Vagifgizi and six of her colleagues, who got sentences of 7 to 9 years for charges like currency smuggling after they reported on corruption among top officials. RSF believes these charges are politically motivated. The Azerbaijani government says these people were convicted of actual crimes and denies any political reason for their arrest.

RSF notes that 21 journalists are in jail in Iran, three in Turkey, and one in Georgia, showing that media freedom is restricted in these neighboring countries as well.

A Call to Action

RSF Secretary-General Thibaut Bruttin believes the continued violence is due to the lack of political will from the international community. He said that governments often make promises but don't create real protections for journalists. He also said that international groups are losing their ability to enforce journalist protection. Bruttin emphasized that these problems, often made worse by smear campaigns against journalists, lead to terrible consequences.