New York, United States. A record 129 journalists and media workers were killed in the course of their work in 2025, the Committee to Protect Journalists said in its annual report. The CPJ said Israeli fire accounted for about two-thirds of the deaths.
Record number of killings
The New York-based organization said it was the second straight year that press killings set a record and the second straight year that Israel was responsible for two-thirds of them.
Gaza and Yemen deaths
The CPJ said Israeli fire killed 86 journalists in 2025, mostly Palestinians in Gaza, and also included 31 workers killed in an attack on a Houthi media centre in Yemen, which it described as the second deadliest attack the CPJ has ever recorded. Israel acknowledged targeting the media centre in Yemen in September, describing it at the time as a propaganda arm of the Houthis.
Targeted killings classification
Israel was also responsible for 81 percent of the 47 killings that the CPJ classified as intentionally targeted, or “murder”, the report said. The CPJ said the actual figure was probably higher due to access restrictions that made verification difficult in Gaza.
Israel’s response and disputed allegations
Israel’s military did not respond to a request for comment. It has said in the past that its troops in Gaza target only combatants, but that operating in combat zones carries inherent risks. The CPJ said Israel does not permit foreign journalists to enter Gaza, so all the media workers killed there were Palestinians.
In several cases, the report said Israel has acknowledged targeting journalists in Gaza it said had links to Hamas, without providing verifiable evidence, while international news organisations have strongly denied that slain reporters had links to militants. The CPJ called such allegations by Israel “deadly smears”.
Conflict-related deaths and other countries
The CPJ said at least 104 of the 129 journalists killed died in connection with conflicts. Apart from Gaza and Yemen, the deadliest countries for journalists included Sudan, where nine were killed, and Mexico, where six died. The CPJ said four Ukrainian journalists were killed by Russian forces and three journalists died in the Philippines.
Russia and Ukraine reactions
Russia has denied deliberately targeting journalists and has accused Ukraine of targeting Russian reporters, which Kyiv denies. There was no immediate comment from Russia’s embassy in Washington to the CPJ report.
What measures do you think are needed to improve the safety of journalists working in conflict zones?