A record 124 journalists were killed worldwide in 2024, making it the deadliest year for the press in over three decades, with nearly 70% of the deaths attributed to Israel, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday.
CPJ said Israel's genocidal war on Gaza has accounted for the deaths of 85 journalists at the hands of the Israeli military and accused Israel of attempting to stifle investigations of incidents, shift blame onto journalists and ignore its duty to hold people to account for the killings.
The Israeli military, when asked for comment, claimed not enough information was provided on the alleged incidents and that it was therefore not able to check them, adding that it takes all operationally feasible measures to mitigate harm to journalists and civilians.
"The IDF has never, and will never, deliberately target journalists," it claimed.
The number of journalists and media workers killed in 2024 is up sharply over recent years – 102 were killed in 2023 and 69 were killed in 2022, according to CPJ. The previous record high deaths were in 2007, when 113 journalists lost their lives, almost half due to the Iraq War, said the committee.
Sudan and Pakistan had the second-highest number of journalists killed last year, the committee said.
"Today is the most dangerous time to be a journalist in CPJ’s history," CEO Jodie Ginsberg said in the statement.
"The war in Gaza is unprecedented in its impact on journalists and demonstrates a major deterioration in global norms on protecting journalists in conflict zones, but it is far from the only place journalists are in danger."
CPJ said it had documented an "alarming rise in the number of targeted killings," adding that at least 24 journalists were deliberately killed because of their work last year, including in Haiti, Mexico, Myanmar, Sudan and elsewhere. It said it had documented at least 10 cases of targeted killings by Israel.
The committee said it is also investigating 20 other killings in which it believes Israel may have specifically targeted journalists in its genocidal war on Gaza that killed over 48,000 Palestinians.
The war was triggered by the Hamas incursion of southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which caused around 1,200 deaths, took 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
At least six journalists and media workers have been killed so far in 2025, the committee said.
