A record 129 journalists and media workers were killed worldwide in 2025, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said, blaming Israel for two-thirds of the deaths.
It is the second consecutive annual record for the number of journalist murders and the deadliest year since CPJ began collecting data more than three decades ago.
“Journalists are being killed in record numbers at a time when access to information is more important than ever,” executive director Jodie Ginsberg said in a statement, adding:
“We are all in danger when journalists are killed for reporting”.
More than three-quarters of all deaths in 2025 occurred in conflicts, CPJ said in its report.
More than 60 percent of the 86 journalists killed by Israeli fire in 2025 were Palestinians reporting from Gaza, the statement added.
The Israeli military claims it never deliberately targets journalists.
The number of journalists killed in Ukraine and Sudan also increased in 2025 compared to the previous year.
CPJ noted an increase in the use of drones, with 39 documented cases, including 28 kills by Israel in Gaza and five by the paramilitary Rapid Support Force in Sudan.
In Ukraine, four journalists were killed by Russian military drones, the highest annual number of journalist deaths in the war of 15 killed since 2022.
Journalists are increasingly vulnerable due to a persistent culture of impunity, CPJ said, noting the lack of transparent investigations into the killings.
Six journalists were killed in Mexico in 2025, and all cases remain unsolved. In the Philippines, three journalists were killed in shootings.
Others have been killed after reporting on corruption, such as a Bangladeshi journalist who was killed by suspects linked to a fraud ring, according to the CPJ report.
Similar deaths linked to organized crime have been reported in India and Peru.
