February 25, 2026  

By Al Jazeera Staff (Al Jazeera)  

Link: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/2/25/israel-has-killed-more-journalists-than-any-government-on-record-cpj

⤷ WHAT HAPPENED  

A new Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) report says 2025 was the deadliest year on record for journalists and media workers, and that Israel was responsible for the largest share of those deaths.

⤷ WHAT’S IN THE ARTICLE  

Al Jazeera says CPJ counted 129 journalist/media-worker killings in 2025, the highest since CPJ began tracking in 1992.

CPJ attributes 84 of those deaths to Israel, more than any other country, and says most of those killed were Palestinian journalists.

The report also says Israel was responsible for most “targeted killings” CPJ classifies as “murder”, with 38 of 47 such cases globally.

CPJ warns the true toll could be higher because Gaza reporting conditions, restrictions, and the destruction of evidence make investigations harder.

The piece also notes a separate deadly incident: Israeli airstrikes that killed 31 staff at Yemeni newspaper offices.

Israel has acknowledged killing some journalists while claiming ties to armed groups, which employers deny. CPJ calls those accusations “deadly smears.”

Outside Gaza and Yemen, CPJ’s next-worst countries for journalist killings in 2025 were Sudan (9) and Mexico (6). It also notes four Ukrainian journalists killed by Russian attacks.

⤷ RELATED COVERAGE  

https://cpj.org/  

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/feb/25/record-number-journalists-killed-2025-israel-gaza-war

⤷ THE REWIND  

When journalists die at this scale, it’s not just “a media story.” It’s a public truth story. Fewer reporters means fewer witnesses, and once witnesses disappear, power gets to rewrite what happened.

NewsRewind⏎

Israel kills more journalists than any nation on record: Media watchdog