129 journalists and media workers were killed last year, with two-thirds by Israel, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

For the second consecutive year, press killings hit a record high, and Israel was responsible for about two-thirds, the New York-based independent organization reported yesterday in its annual report.

Some key takeaways in the report include:

• The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has committed more targeted killings of journalists than any other government’s military since CPJ began documentation in 1992.
• Drone killings of press members are on the rise: surging from two in 2023 — the first year CPJ documented such killings — to 39 in 2025.
• At least 104 of the 129 journalists and media workers were killed amid conflicts in 2025. While the number of journalists killed in Ukraine and Sudan increased, the majority were Palestinians killed by Israel.

• The uptick in journalist killings is symptomatic of a wider decline in press freedom and journalist safety globally.

Killers in five nations were responsible for 84% of journalist deaths in 2025.

Following Israel (86 journalist deaths), were Sudan (9 deaths), Mexico (6), Russia (4) and Philippines (3).