2025
Belarusian journalist Maryna Zolatava released after serving over 4 years in prison
Paris, December 15, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the release of Belarusian journalist Maryna Zolatava, who was among 123 prisoners freed on Saturday as part of a deal in which the United States announced it was lifting sanctions on Belarus’s potash exports. All were pardoned by Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko. “We are relieved that journalist Maryna Zolatava is finally free,…
CPJ, partners condemn jailing of Vietnamese journalist Pham Doan Trang on sentencing anniversary
The Committee to Protect Journalists joined eight partner organizations in a joint advocacy statement calling on Vietnam’s government to release journalist Pham Doan Trang. Trang, who is serving a nine-year prison sentence for her critical reporting, received CPJ’s 2022 International Press Freedom Award for her courage in the face of persecution. The joint statement published on December 12 was timed…
CPJ condemns Hong Kong’s conviction of Jimmy Lai in national security case
New York, December 14, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns a Hong Kong court’s conviction of Jimmy Lai, founder of the defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, in a landmark national security trial and calls on authorities to immediately free the 78-year-old British citizen. “This sham conviction is a disgraceful act of persecution,” said CPJ Asia-Pacific…
Trial of 12 journalists begins in Azerbaijan’s case against Meydan TV
New York, December 12, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists called on Azerbaijan to drop all charges and release 12 journalists as the trial against Germany-based Meydan TV began Friday in the capital, Baku. “The sorry sight of 11 journalists and a respected journalism teacher on trial in the case against award-winning Meydan TV only underscores the vast…
‘Disguised dictatorship’: A fight for government transparency amid Haiti’s insecurity
Read this story en français in collaboration with AyiboPost. Violent attacks and threats waged by a coalition of militarized gangs are among the many risks Haitian journalists face to report the news amid intensifying insecurity in the country’s capital city, Port-au-Prince. Yet as a rotating cast of transitional leaders hope to restore order across the Caribbean nation,…
Hong Kong court set to rule in Jimmy Lai trial on Monday
New York, December 12, 2025—Ahead of Monday’s expected verdict in the national security trial of Jimmy Lai, founder of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, the Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Hong Kong authorities to drop all charges against the 78-year-old publisher and release him immediately and unconditionally. Lai, whose health has worsened after spending…
US senator’s revelations show Israel does not investigate war crimes against journalists; US and international community must step in
US government failed in its duty to pursue accountability for American journalist Dylan Collins, targeted in the October 13, 2023, Israeli attack that killed Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah Washington, December 11, 2025 — The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Amnesty International USA today joined U.S. Sens. Peter Welch (D-VT), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and…
Under the radar: Israel steps up censorship and suppression of independent reporting
Two years into Israel’s genocide in Gaza, press freedom inside the country has reached a breaking point. Journalists report escalating censorship, harassment, and self-censorship that, they say, now functions as “part of the war effort.” Independent reporting has sharply declined, leaving the Israeli public with a distorted view of the conflict. An October 2025 report…
DRC journalist Ali Male threatened, detained over report criticizing army colonel
Kinshasa, December 10, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to release Ali Male, a reporter with the privately owned En Quete News site and Kinshasa-based Kin24 TV, who was arrested on December 8 over a report about an army colonel. “DRC authorities must release Ali and…
Ethiopian TikTok journalist Eyob Shimelis detained after corruption reporting
Nairobi, December 10, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Ethiopian authorities to immediately release journalist Eyob Shimelis, who has been in detention since December 1 on accusations of spreading false information and defamation. Police arrested Eyob, founder and reporter of TikTok-based Sidama News, which reports on corruption in Ethiopia’s southern Sidama state, at around…