A total of 153 journalists and media workers have been killed worldwide so far this year, a figure that "has never been so high in ten months," denounced the Press Emblem Campaign (PEC), which emphasized that two-thirds of the deaths occurred in armed conflicts.
The Gaza Strip has been particularly dangerous for media professionals, with 57 journalists killed so far this year. It is followed by the war in Ukraine and Yemen, mired in a civil conflict since 2015, with eleven deaths each.
Mexico stands out as the country without an armed conflict where the most journalists have been killed, with 10, surpassing even Sudan, which has 7.
"Never before have so many journalists been killed without investigations being carried out to identify those responsible and bring them to justice," lamented the president of the PEC, Blaise Lempen.
On the occasion of the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, commemorated on November 2, the NGO urged all UN member states to support the establishment of an independent international commission to investigate serious violations of international humanitarian, criminal, or human rights law committed against journalists.
This independent commission would issue recommendations to strengthen the legislation of countries, accountability mechanisms, and victim reparations, "thus facilitating the truth and preventing recurrence".
"When a journalist is killed and the crime goes unpunished, this tragedy also sends the message that killing journalists is acceptable (...), it sends a chilling signal that the powerful can silence voices," the NGO denounced.
The rest of the journalist murders in 2025 have occurred in India (6), Pakistan (5), Bangladesh (4), Ecuador (4), Iran (4), Philippines (3), Syria (3), Afghanistan (2), Colombia (2), Honduras (2), Iraq (2), Lebanon (2), Nigeria (2), Peru (2), Democratic Republic of Congo (2), United States (2), Brazil (1), Guatemala (1), Haiti (1), Nepal (1), Saudi Arabia (1), Somalia (1), Turkey (1) and Zimbabwe (1).
