News

August 21, 2025 - USA -  On August 20, 2025, federal immigration agents clashed violently with demonstrators outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office in downtown San Francisco. The confrontation erupted after protesters gathered at 100 Montgomery Street to oppose the detention of an asylum-seeker inside the nearby immigration court. Witnesses reported that ICE officers escalated the situation by deploying pepper spray, batons, and tasers against the crowd, which included both activists and members of the press. Local outlet Mission Local reported that at least one protester was detained during the clash. Disturbingly,...

August 21, 2025 - USA/Palestine - A group of 17 United States Senators has formally urged Secretary of State Marco Rubio to press the Israeli government to ensure the safety of journalists in Gaza and facilitate access for international media into the region. The appeal comes just one week after a tragic Israeli strike that resulted in the deaths of several journalists. In their letter, the senators emphasised that “banning and censoring media organizations and targeting or threatening members of the press is unacceptable and must stop.” They called on the U.S. to make clear...

August 20, 2025 - Chile/Peru - Olfran Domingo Rivas Ramos, alias "Pancho," has been apprehended in Santiago, Chile, as a suspect in the January 20 assassination of Peruvian journalist Gastón Medina Sotomayor. Rivas Ramos was detained by Chilean authorities during a routine traffic stop in Maipú—even though he had been wanted in connection with Medina’s killing—after being found carrying drugs and using false identification. He allegedly admitted to belonging to the criminal gang Los Piratas de Aragua. His arrest holds significant promise for advancing justice in a case that has haunted Peruvian media freedom. Medina,...

August 20, 2025 - Palestine -  In his August 20, 2025, commentary, freelance journalist Dario Sabaghi exposes how recent strikes on media workers in Gaza—most notably the August 10 attack on an Al Jazeera crew—underscore a troubling, long-standing pattern of violence that empowers entrenched impunity. Sabaghi argues that the deliberate targeting of journalists not only thwarts independent reporting but also normalizes such attacks, emboldening Israeli forces to continue them without fear of accountability. He observes that these assaults echo past incidents in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, signaling that such violence is systemic—part of a broader...

August 20, 2025 - China -  The National Press Club (NPC) has announced that it will present its 2025 President’s Award to Dong Yuyu, a veteran Chinese journalist and former editor sentenced to seven years on espionage charges. NPC President Mike Balsamo asserted, “Journalism is not espionage. Dong Yuyu is being punished for his work and his words.” He called on Chinese authorities to release Dong immediately and cease criminalizing standard newsgathering and professional interactions with foreign colleagues. Dong’s son, Yifu, is slated to accept the award on his behalf and deliver remarks during the...

August 20, 2025 - USA -  Veteran Boston journalist Lisa Hughes, a longtime anchor at WBZ-TV (CBS Boston), has filed a $4 million lawsuit against CBS, alleging that she was removed from her anchor role because she is white. Hughes, an Emmy-winning reporter with more than two decades at the station, claims the decision reflects a discriminatory application of the network’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) agenda rather than a fair employment decision. According to the lawsuit, Hughes had consistently high ratings and an established reputation as a respected anchor. However, in 2022, CBS executives...

August 20, 2025 - Sri Lanka/India -  Tamil photojournalist and human rights defender Kanapathipillai Kumanan, based in Sri Lanka’s Northern Province, has become the focal point of renewed state harassment. On August 7, 2025, Kumanan was issued a summons by the Counter Terrorism Investigation Department (CTID) to appear for questioning on August 17, with no official rationale provided. It is believed the summons relates to his social media posts and recent reporting on mass grave excavations at Chemmani (Chemmani) and Kokkuthodvai, which unearthed over 140 skeletal remains over 41 days—images that spread widely through advocacy...

August 20, 2025 - Iraq/Kurdistan -  Investigative journalist Sherwan Sherwani, formerly editor of Bashur magazine and known for reporting on corruption in Iraqi Kurdistan, received yet another prison sentence—four years and five months just weeks before his scheduled release. This ruling came on August 19, 2025, at an Erbil court, effectively delaying his release from prison in September 2025, according to his lawyer, Mohamed Abdallah. Sherwani’s legal troubles trace back to his October 2020 arrest, when he was charged with “espionage” and “incitement to protest and destabilize the region.” In February 2021, he received a six-year prison...

Source: CPJ - Nairobi, August 20, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply alarmed by the abduction of Ethiopian newspaper editor Yonas Amare, the arbitrary detention of journalist Khadar Mohamed Ismael, and the incommunicado detention of radio host Abdulsemed Mohammed. On August 13, masked men reportedly wearing military uniforms abducted Yonas, who works with the privately owned Reporter newspaper, from his home in Sheger City on the outskirts of the capital, Addis Ababa, according to multiple news outlets and colleagues who spoke with CPJ on condition of anonymity, citing safety concerns. Eyewitnesses said that the men who abducted Yonas first went...

20 August 2025 – Erbil Kurdish investigative journalist Sherwan Sherwani has been handed a new prison sentence just days before his expected release, in a move widely condemned as politically motivated. An Erbil court ruled that Sherwani must serve an additional four years and five months in prison, extending his incarceration that began in 2020. According to his lawyer, the timing of the verdict is a deliberate attempt to keep him behind bars, despite his nearing release date. Plans to appeal the ruling have already been announced. A History of Repeated Sentences Sherwani, a well-known...

August 19, 2025 - Palestine -  On Monday, August 18, 2025, Israeli forces carried out heavy shelling across the Gaza Strip, striking both residential areas and displacement sites. Among the victims was Islam al-Kumi, a Palestinian journalist who lost his life when Israeli tanks bombarded a house belonging to the al-Ghazi family in the Sabra neighborhood of western Gaza. The strike killed al-Kumi and a woman, while others in the home sustained injuries. His death marks another devastating loss for Palestinian journalism, as reporters continue to face immense risks while documenting the war’s toll on...

August 19, 2025 - USA - A lawsuit was filed against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), alleging the deployment of excessive force against protesters and journalists during immigration-related protests in Los Angeles. The suit, spearheaded by organizations like the ACLU of Southern California and the Los Angeles Press Club, accuses DHS agents of targeting peaceful demonstrators with rubber bullets, pepper balls, tear gas, and flash‑bang grenades, often without warning—even when journalists clearly displayed press credentials. Journalists were notably among the casualties: at least 20 to 27 media professionals reportedly suffered injuries from less-lethal munitions,...

August 19, 2025 - Yemen -  On August 16, 2025, Yemeni security forces raided the home of Jamana News Agency journalist Hamoud Hazz’a in Al‑Jufaina camp, Marib Governorate. His mobile phone and laptop were confiscated, and he was taken to an undisclosed location with no legal basis cited. Before the raid, Hazz’a had posted on Facebook that security personnel were stationed outside his home and that the Fourth Security Zone force had forcibly broken down his door, terrifying his family. Following his arrest, Hazz’a was transferred from political security detention to military prosecution and presented...

August 18, 2025 - Palestine -  In a deeply disturbing revelation, Al Jazeera reported that the remains of journalist Marwa Musallam were found 45 days after she was buried alive in the rubble of an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City. The harrowing incident reportedly occurred in July 2025, when an Israeli strike collapsed the building where Musallam was located. Despite her cries for help, rescue efforts were thwarted by ongoing bombardment and the denial of access to the area for emergency crews. Her remains were only recovered in mid‑August, roughly six weeks after the attack....

Cape Town, August 17, 2025 – More than 2,000 South African journalists and media workers marched through Sea Point, Cape Town, demanding protection for Palestinian colleagues in Gaza and denouncing what they described as Israel’s deliberate targeting of the press. The demonstration, organized by Journalists Against Apartheid (JAA) and the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, drew wide support from civil society, including Mothers4Gaza, South African Jews for a Free Palestine, and Healthcare Workers 4 Palestine. Catalyst: Al-Shifa Hospital Strike The march was sparked by the August 10 airstrike on a tent outside Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City,...

August 18, 2025 - Vietnam -  In a powerful and revealing interview, independent journalist Doan Bao Chau declares: “My case clearly shows there is no press freedom in Vietnam.” Speaking to Reporters Without Borders (RSF), he asserts that the charges leveled against him are entirely fabricated and politically motivated. According to Chau, authorities accused him—in a message delivered to his wife—of leading the so‑called “Vinh Long State Party,” a claim he firmly rejects. He insists, “I have never been involved in any political party,” affirming instead that the real issue is his journalistic work: highlighting...

August 18, 2025 - Palestine -  In her compelling Guardian commentary published on 18 August 2025, Nesrine Malik elevates the resilience, dignity, and professionalism of Gaza’s journalists—even as they face targeted violence and relentless danger. Malik introduces Tamer Almisshal, the veteran's head of Al Jazeera’s Gaza bureau, who has witnessed the deaths of key colleagues—Hamza al-Dahdouh, Samer Abu Daqqa, and Anas al-Sharif—yet continues to lead a newsroom gripped by trauma, hunger, and loss. Malik warns that the targeting of these journalists appears deliberate, part of a broader strategy enforced by Israeli operations to silence first-hand accounts...

August 18, 2025 - General -  The war in Gaza has become the deadliest conflict for journalists ever recorded, with more than 270 killed, most of them Palestinians. Despite repeated condemnations and legal efforts, traditional methods to protect journalists have proven ineffective. A recent initiative by the Columbia Journalism Review gathered media thinkers and press freedom advocates to propose urgent new approaches, arguing that symbolic protest, direct accountability, and institutional innovation are necessary to confront Israel’s ongoing suppression of independent reporting. The proposals stress that journalists and media organizations must move beyond passive statements and...

August 17, 2025 - Ethiopia -  Two Ethiopian journalists were abducted within a week in what rights groups say reflects an intensifying assault on press freedom. According to an exclusive report by Borkena, the first journalist, Abdulsameed Mohamed, host of the "Kidame Gebeya" program on Ahad Radio 94.3, was forcibly taken on 11 August 2025. He is a seasoned broadcaster with three decades of experience across major outlets, including Ethiopian Television, Radio, EBS TV, Ahadu Radio, and YouTube platforms. Just two days later, on 13 August 2025, Yonas Amare, a reporter for The Ethiopian Reporter known...

August 17, 2025 - Palestine -  In an exclusive interview with the Tehran Times, Abdul‑Qader Fayez, head of Al Jazeera’s office in Tehran, asserts that the killing of journalists in Gaza—including that of correspondent Anas al-Sharif—is no accident, but a deliberate feature of Israel’s military and political strategy under Prime Minister Netanyahu. Fayez emphasizes that Palestinian media workers are being treated as “military targets simply because they reject Israel’s narrative.” He highlights growing consensus among international human rights groups and media watchdogs that these killings reflect a systematic policy, pointing to repeated unfounded accusations branding journalists...

August 16, 2025 - Palestine -  Journalists in Gaza live with a heightened and pervasive fear: their protective gear, once seen as a shield, now marks them as targets. This was vividly captured in the wake of a drone strike on August 10 that killed four Al Jazeera staff in a tent outside al‑Shifa Hospital. Israeli military officials admitted targeting the tent, defending the action with unsubstantiated allegations that one of the victims, Anas al‑Sharif, was a Hamas member. The Committee to Protect Journalists denounced these allegations as part of a broader campaign to delegitimize...

August 16, 2025 - Palestine -  A growing body of reporting suggests Israel has engaged in a systematic campaign to delegitimize and endanger journalists in Gaza by portraying them as Hamas operatives. Investigations by Israeli‑Palestinian outlet +972 Magazine and others reveal the existence of a covert "legitimisation cell" within Israeli military intelligence, established after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks. Its mission was to gather information—even of dubious credibility—to smear Palestinian journalists as terrorist affiliates, thus providing cover for strikes against them and deflecting international criticism. One intelligence source candidly described the aim as maintaining...

August 16, 2025 - China/USA -  President Donald Trump has promised to intervene on behalf of Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai, who remains on trial under China’s sweeping national security law. Speaking in a radio interview, Trump stated that he would “do everything I can to save him,” making clear that Lai’s case has already been raised in official discussions. He acknowledged that taking up the matter would upset Chinese President Xi Jinping, but said that defending Lai is a matter of justice and press freedom. His remarks come as Washington and Beijing continue...

August 16, 2025 - Syria/USA -  At the National Press Club in Washington, the family of Austin Tice marked the thirteenth anniversary of his disappearance with new revelations from recently declassified intelligence. Tice, a freelance journalist and former Marine, vanished in Syria in 2012 while covering the conflict. His parents, Debra and Marc Tice, were granted access to raw intelligence files earlier this year by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. The files, though heavily redacted and unverified, suggest that U.S. agencies received information almost daily about Tice’s captivity, including reports of his medical treatment...

August 15, 2025 - Somalia -  A Somaliland journalist, Ahmed Mohamud Dool, has been detained without charge since August 5, 2025, prompting the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) to call for his immediate and unconditional release. Ahmed was taken into custody in Hargeisa after responding to a police summons at the Criminal Investigations Department headquarters. The Somaliland Journalist Association (SOLJA) and a local journalist familiar with the case confirmed his arrest. He runs a well‑followed Facebook page — with approximately 98,000 followers — reporting on local issues such as killings, insecurity, and protests. His lawyer,...