At least 61 journalists killed in Israel-Gaza war
The first month of the Israel-Gaza war is now the deadliest month for journalists since CPJ began documenting journalist fatalities in 1992.
As of December 1, CPJ’s investigations showed at least 61 journalists and media workers were among more than 16,000 killed since the war began on October 7—with some 14,800 deaths in the Palestinian territories of Gaza and the West Bank and 1,200 in Israel. This deadly toll is coupled with harassment, detentions, and other reporting obstructions in Gaza, the West Bank, Israel, and beyond.
Israeli forces have told news agencies that they cannot guarantee safety of journalists working in Gaza, where the war resumed on Friday after a one-week truce. Gaza has experienced multiple communications blackouts and journalists are reporting disruptions to phone and internet connections, particularly in the north.
CPJ is investigating all reports of journalists and media workers killed, injured, detained or missing in the war. The results of these investigations, which are based on testimonies of CPJ sources in the region and media reports, are published here. It is unclear whether all journalists were covering the conflict at the time of their deaths, but CPJ has included them in our count as we investigate their circumstances. The list is being updated regularly.
More coverage and photos of the war’s unprecedented toll on journalists
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Azerbaijan cracks down on critical journalists
An Azerbaijan court ordered the three-month detention of journalist Nargiz Absalamova on December 1 amid a crackdown against journalists associated with critical news platforms.
Absalamova is the fourth member of Abzas Media — known for its anti-corruption reporting — to be held in pretrial detention on charges of conspiring to bring money into the country unlawfully. In November, Abzas Media’s director, Ulvi Hasanli; chief editor, Sevinj Vagifgizi; and Hasanli’s assistant, Mahammad Kekalov, were detained on the same charges after police said they found 40,000 euro (US$43,650) during a November 20 raid on the outlet’s office.
Media reports have linked the crackdown on Abzas Media to a decline in Azerbaijani-Western relations following Azerbaijan’s military offensive into Nagorno-Karabakh in September.
An anti-Western campaign in Azerbaijani state media, initiated days before the first Abzas Media arrests, highlighted donor organizations’ funding of civil society and independent media, accusing them of creating networks of Western “agents” in Azerbaijan and advocating a hunt for “spies.”
Absalamova’s arrest came days after Aziz Orujov, director of the popular online television channel Kanal 13, was arrested by eight police officers, seven of whom were wearing masks, and confiscated his laptops, cell phone, and bank cards.
Orujov—who was previously jailed in 2017—has also been ordered to be held in pre-trial detention for three months.
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