“When attacks on the media become normal, freedom itself begins to declineand with it, the foundations of peace, security and sustainable development,” he warned.
A dangerous job
The High Commissioner paid tribute to the brave reporters and photographers around the world “who document horrendous atrocities, expose corruption and scrutinize business operations.”
He noted, however, that “Journalism today has become an insecure and sometimes dangerous profession.”, while media workers have been “bombed in their cars, kidnapped from their offices, silenced behind bars and fired from their jobs.”
At least 14 journalists have been murdered since JanuaryOnly about a tenth of killings in the past two decades have resulted in full accountability, and covering armed conflicts poses the greatest risk.
Mourners perform the funeral prayer for Palestinian journalists killed in an Israeli airstrike on August 10, 2025.
Gaza’s ‘death trap’
“Israel’s war in Gaza has become a death trap for the media. My office has verified the murder of nearly 300 journalists since October 2023, and many more have been injured,” he said.
“So far in 2026, Lebanon is the deadliest country for media workers.”
Furthermore, it is often only local reporters who cover wars, like the journalists he met in Sudan “who had faced extreme violence, brutality and even famine, all while trying to continue their essential work.”
The ‘first casualties’ of the war
In his message for the Day, UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated that “recent years have seen a sharp increase in the number of journalists killed. often deliberately targeted – in war zones.”
Although a popular saying states that the truth is the first victim of war: “Too often, the first victims are journalists who risk everything to report that truth, not only in war, but wherever those in power fear scrutiny..”
But press freedom is also under “unprecedented strain” due to “economic pressures, new technologies and active manipulation,” he said.
No safe place
Echoing this, Türk warned that “virtually no country is truly safe for those who speak truth to power.”
The High Commissioner highlighted his recent visit to Mexico, where reporting on corruption, environmental damage or organized crime has exposed journalists, their sources and even their families to serious risks.
“I am deeply concerned that media workers are the primary targets of increasing transnational repression and surveillance, as seen most recently in attacks on Iranian journalists abroad,” he said.
Online harassment and abuse
At the same time, laws on defamation, disinformation, cybercrime and terrorism are increasingly used to protect the powerful, while costly legal cases are used to intimidate and silence journalists.
World, Currently, some 330 media workers are detained along with some 500 citizen journalists and human rights bloggers..
The UN human rights chief expressed concern about online harassment and intimidation, which disproportionately affects female journalists, three quarters of whom have suffered abuses such as smear campaigns and threats of sexual violence.
“Attacks like this”We risk creating a misinformation society, in which the media is forced to hide the facts and deny that science operates safely.“, said.
Silence the press
Meanwhile, efforts to silence the press “have become disturbingly creative,” including access restrictions, internet shutdowns and news blackouts. He noted that “in some cases, an unholy alliance between political, corporate and media power is damaging democracy and polarizing societies.”
Economic pressure is reaching record levels, which aggravates the situation. In almost a third of countries, funding cuts and media concentration are forcing local media outlets to close.
Journalists in Somalia attend a press conference. (archive)
Driven by conviction
Faced with these challenges, journalists continue to report under the harshest conditions—“even from hospital beds and wheelchairs”—because they believe the truth is worth fighting for.
Emphasizing that they cannot fight alone, Türk called on countries to “end persecution of the press, lift arbitrary restrictions, repeal abusive laws and align legal frameworks with international human rights standards.”
Governments are urged to prevent attacks against media workers, protect them from surveillance (even when working abroad), investigate violations and ensure accountability.
He also called on technology companies to take meaningful action against online abuse and disinformation, and underlined the importance of maintaining independence, transparency and integrity within media institutions.