UNESCO reported that 189 journalists were killed worldwide in 2024 and 2025, the highest two-year total recorded in a decade. (Foto: Instagram)
A study released Nov. 2 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) found that 189 journalists were killed worldwide in 2024 and 2025. That is the highest two-year total recorded by the organization in a decade, though below the 215 killings documented in 2014 and 2015, according to UNESCO’s report on journalists’ safety and impunity.
Conflict zones accounted for 127 of the deaths, or 67% of the total. That represents a 24% increase compared with 2022 and 2023. The study said drones were used in 50 of the killings. Media facilities and offices where journalists worked also became targets in war zones; at least 36 journalists were killed at such sites, including nine in a single incident.
In at least 15 cases, there were indications that journalists had been targeted despite wearing press-identifying vests or traveling in vehicles marked as belonging to the media. The report also recorded deaths outside conflict zones, but the figures in the published account do not align: it first gives a total of 61 journalists killed outside conflict zones, then refers to 62 victims in that context. It lists 17 killed at work, 33 in vehicles and 20 at home, figures that add up to 70. The account also says four media workers died in terrorist attacks and seven were killed during demonstrations by protesters or security forces.
The study said 104 of those killed were covering armed conflicts. Another 38 were reporting on political issues, while 22 were covering criminal activity; others were investigating corruption. Five victims were between 15 and 24 years old, and 20 were between 25 and 29. Women accounted for 14 deaths, or 7% of the total. Thirteen of those women were killed in conflict zones. The report described the proportion as the lowest since 2012 and 2013.
Palestine had the highest number of journalist deaths, with 62—about one-third of the global total for the two-year period. The report’s account said the territory had been subject to intense attacks by Israeli forces since 2023.
In Brazil, the study recorded one case: the killing of radio host Luís Augusto Carneiro da Costa, known as “Luisinho Costa.” He was killed in May 2025 at the Rádio Guarany studio in Abaetetuba, in the state of Pará. Pará Civil Police said the investigation was completed and sent to the courts, with four people indicted.
The report also highlighted the persistence of impunity for crimes against journalists. Since 2006, 1,641 journalists have been killed worldwide, but only 223 of those cases—14%—have been resolved through the judicial system, according to UNESCO.
