Israel named 'worst enemy of journalists' by Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has described the Israeli army as “the worst enemy of journalists” in its annual report published on Thursday, with nearly half of all reporter killings worldwide recorded in Gaza.
The French-based organisation said that of the 67 media professionals killed over the past year, 43 percent were killed by Israel, making the Palestinian territories the most dangerous place in the world for journalists.
According to RSF, the Israeli army is the primary perpetrator of journalist deaths, ahead of cartels and organised crime groups (24 percent) and the Russian army (four percent).
“Under Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, the Israeli army has carried out a massacre - unprecedented in recent history - of the Palestinian press,” RSF said in its latest report.
“To justify its crimes, the Israeli military has mounted a global propaganda campaign to spread baseless accusations portraying Palestinian journalists as terrorists.”
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During the tw0-year genocidal war on Gaza, Israel regularly made unfounded claims that it had targeted reporters for allegedly taking part in militant activities.
These Israeli attacks on media personnel - which have killed more than 250 journalists since October 2023, according to the Palestinian Media Office in Gaza - have been widely condemned by leading human rights organisations, experts and activists.
In one such case, a targeted Israeli strike killed Al Jazeera journalist Anas al-Sharif on 10 August, along with Al Jazeera journalists Mohammed Qreiqeh, Mohammed Noufal and Ibrahim Zaher, as well as freelance journalists Moamen Aliwa and Mohammed al-Khaldi.
Israel claimed that Sharif was a member of Hamas but provided no substantial evidence for the allegation, which Al Jazeera has strenuously denied.
In the same month, “double-tap” air strikes targeting Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza killed more than 20 people, including five journalists.
The blasts killed Middle East Eye journalists Mohamed Salama and Ahmed Abu Aziz, as well as Mariam Dagga, a freelance reporter who had worked with several media outlets including the Associated Press; Hussam al-Masri, a photojournalist with the Reuters news agency; and freelance reporter Moaz Abu Taha.
Detention and imprisonment
RSF has also identified Israel as being “among the world’s biggest jails for journalists”, ranking it ninth globally, just after Egypt.
“In 2025, after more than two years of a blockade on the Gaza Strip, this repression of the press continued with impunity,” the report said.
Since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza, the arrest of journalists has surged dramatically, with more than 250 media workers detained.
RSF noted that at least 20 Palestinian journalists are currently being held by Israel. The Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs puts the figure higher, identifying 50 media professionals in detention.
Most have not been formally charged, with allegations frequently linked to social media activity labelled as “incitement”.
Others are being held under administrative detention based on undisclosed “secret files”.
This controversial practice, routinely used by Israeli forces against Palestinians, allows for indefinite detention without charge or trial, often on the basis of secret evidence.
Foreign journalists and international media outlets have also faced Israeli raids and arrests.
In early January, French journalist and Middle East Eye contributor Sylvain Mercadier was detained for more than four hours by Israeli forces in Syria while covering the army’s advance in the country.
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