The United Nations has raised alarm over increasing attacks on journalists worldwide, warning that threats against media workers are endangering press freedom and democracy.
The UN call came as the World celebrates Press Freedom Day.
The UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk said “journalism has become a dangerous profession, with reporters facing killings, arrests, harassment, abductions, and intimidation.”
According to the UN, about 330 journalists, alongside hundreds of citizen reporters and bloggers, are currently detained globally.
Türk noted that laws on defamation, cybercrime, and terrorism are often misused to silence journalists and protect those in power.
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The UN also revealed that at least 14 journalists have been killed since January, while nearly 300 media workers have died since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.
Türk described Gaza as a “death trap” for journalists.
He further expressed concern over online abuse, especially against women journalists, and warned that “attacks on the media threaten peace, security, and truth itself.”
UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged governments to protect journalists, investigate attacks, and uphold press freedom globally.
The United Nations General Assembly declared May 3 as World Press Freedom Day, observed annually to raise awareness about the importance of press freedom and to remind governments of their duty to respect and uphold the right to freedom of expression, as enshrined in Article 19 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The day also marks the anniversary of the Windhoek Declaration, a landmark statement of free press principles adopted by African journalists in Windhoek, Namibia, in 1991.
