In the framework of World Press Freedom Day, the
One Free Press Coalition disseminated the annual list of the
“10 most urgent cases” of persecuted journalists in the world, which includes professionals from countries such as Iran, China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Tajikistan, Cameroon, Philippines, Azerbaijan, Ethiopia and Algeria.
The report, prepared jointly with the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF), and Reporters Without Borders (RSF), warned that 330 journalists are currently deprived of their freedom worldwide for carrying out their work, according to data collected as of December 2025.
According to CPJ information,
61% of imprisoned reporters face "anti-state" charges, including accusations of terrorism, propaganda, or collaboration with foreign governments.
The list places in first place the case of Reza Valizadeh, an Iranian-American journalist sentenced to ten years in prison in Iran after returning in 2024 to care for his parents. Valizadeh, who had worked for more than a decade and a half in US media, was arrested in September after being questioned for alleged collaboration with the United States government.
Valizadeh's health seriously deteriorated during his detention in Iranian prisons
The coalition reported that Valizadeh's health
considerably worsened during his detention, especially after a transfer to Fashafouyeh prison, where his chronic asthma was aggravated by the overcrowded conditions.
According to the journalist's brother, the situation became critical after a deadly attack on Evin prison, in the context of the war between Iran and Israel in 2025. Faced with international pressure, the United States Department of State demanded the immediate release of Valizadeh and those who remain detained for similar reasons.
The second case corresponds to
Jimmy Lai, a Hong Kong media entrepreneur and founder of
Apple Daily, who was sentenced by a Hong Kong court to
20 years in prison on charges of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and publication of seditious material. The authorities accused him of conspiring with foreign forces and publishing seditious material (Reuters)
In addition to Lai, six other members of
Apple Daily received similar sentences, while the pro-democracy newspaper ceased publication in 2021 after suffering asset freezes and constant raids.
The CPJ identified
China as the country with the highest number of imprisoned journalists in the world, with at least 51 reporters detained, eight of them in Hong Kong.
The list also includes
Zhang Zhan, a Chinese reporter who was arrested in May 2020 while covering the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan.
Zhang served a sentence of
four years for
“provoking disturbances”, a criminal charge recurrently used to silence critics and activists.
After regaining freedom in 2024, she was arrested again on the same charges and sentenced to another four years in prison, in a process that, according to Reporters Without Borders, was marked by the absence of legal guarantees and reports of hunger strikes and forced feeding.
The organization reported that Zhang was denied access to lawyers and the possibility of choosing his defense, while his health was compromised during the periods of imprisonment.
Another case on the list is that of
Pham Doan Trang, a Vietnamese journalist and writer sentenced in 2021 to
nine years in prison for alleged anti-state propaganda.
The list also includes professionals from other regions who have suffered persecution for their reporting work. The Tajik journalist
Ulfatkhonim Mamadshoeva was arrested in 2022 at her home, accused of organizing protests and found guilty of multiple serious crimes, including treason and terrorism.
Others also included on the list are filmmaker and journalist
Tsi Conrad, imprisoned since 2018 for covering protests, and
Frenchie Mae Cumpio, a Filipino reporter convicted on terrorism charges after investigating police abuses.
In addition, Sevinj Vagifgizi, Azerbaijani editor of Abzas Media, sentenced for alleged financial crimes;
Genet Asmamaw, Ethiopian journalist of Medlot Media, detained for incitement to violence; and
Christophe Gleizes, French journalist imprisoned in Algeria after being convicted of condoning terrorism.
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