World Press Freedom Day, celebrated this Sunday, is an annual occasion to remember the increasing threats to the profession of reporting on what happens in the world. While freedom of expression has fallen by 10% globally over the last decade, according to UNESCO, last year was the deadliest for the press, with 129 reporters killed worldwide according to data from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Israel remains for the second consecutive year in this count as “responsible” for two-thirds of the deaths certified by this New York-based nonprofit organization. And the CPJ has also counted 330 journalists imprisoned in 2025, nearly half of whom have not received a conviction and 20% report having been tortured or beaten.
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The One Free Press Coalition—which includes international media such as The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Economist, The Atlantic and EL PAÍS—publishes on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day its annual list of the Ten Most Urgent cases of journalists imprisoned in various countries for seeking the truth. “These are cases focused on journalists targeted on charges related to terrorism or against state authorities,” this organization states when presenting its list in collaboration with the CPJ, the International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF), and Reporters Without Borders (which has just published its World Press Freedom Index, according to which this right falls to its lowest level in 25 years and Spain has lost six places in the list “due to the widespread deterioration of conditions for practicing journalism”). As the One Free Press Coalition recalls, the CPJ estimates that most journalists imprisoned in various countries face charges “against state authorities,” including accusations of terrorism or accepting funds from a foreign government. This is the list of the “ten most urgent cases”:
‘The Ten Most Urgent’ of the Free Press Coalition
Reza Valizadeh. Iranian-American journalist, worked in the United States for 16 years and was detained in September 2024 in Tehran after returning to care for his parents. Valizadeh was sentenced to 10 years in prison, accused of “collaboration with the hostile government of the United States.” Since his arrest, his health has deteriorated as a result of his transfer to the dangerous and overcrowded Fashafouyeh prison.
Jimmy Lai. Founder of the censored newspaper Apple Daily, this 78-year-old British businessman and journalist was arrested on August 10, 2020, by Hong Kong police. He was charged with conspiracy to publish seditious material and collusion with foreign forces, crimes under the national security law imposed by Beijing to suppress protests and silence dissent. In February this year, a Hong Kong court sentenced him to 20 years in prison along with six other Apple Daily colleagues.
Pham Doan Trang. Vietnamese author, journalist, and activist, Trang was sentenced to nine years in prison for “anti-state propaganda” offenses. Her work in media such as the legal magazine Luat Khoa, which she founded, and the independent website The Vietnamese, focuses on defending democracy, freedom of expression, human rights, and denouncing police brutality. Despite the progressive deterioration of her health during detention—partly attributed to harassment by security forces—the authorities have denied her access to external medical treatment, according to an investigation by The Vietnamese.
Zhang Zhan. 42-year-old Chinese journalist serving her second sentence. In May 2020, she was detained on charges of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” while reporting from Wuhan during the covid-19 pandemic outbreak. After serving four years, she was arrested again in 2024 on the same charges. According to Reporters Without Borders, Zhang has been denied the right to meet with lawyers and to be represented by a lawyer of her choice in a closed trial. Zhang has declared several hunger strikes due to mistreatment and was hospitalized and force-fed during her imprisonment.
Ulfatkhonim Mamadshoeva. Veteran independent Tajik journalist detained in 2022 at her home amid mass protests in the autonomous region of Gorno-Badakhshan in eastern Tajikistan. Authorities accused her of organizing the unrest. Mamadshoeva was convicted on multiple charges—including treason, terrorism, forming a criminal group, violent usurpation of state power, murder, and attempted murder—and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
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Tsi Conrad. Filmmaker and photographer imprisoned since 2018 for covering protests and still awaiting a court date after appealing his 15-year sentence in 2023 before the Supreme Court of Cameroon. Charges against him include secession, hostility against the state, rebellion, and spreading false news.
Frenchie Mae Cumpio. 27-year-old Filipino journalist whose reports investigated abuses by military and police forces. She has been detained for over six years after a Filipino court rejected her bail request last February. Cumpio was sentenced to between 12 and 18 years in prison on terrorism financing charges, but an external investigation concluded that authorities planted weapons in her home to incriminate her in 2021.
Sevinj Vagifgizi. Director of the anti-corruption investigative media Abzas Media, serving a nine-year prison sentence in Azerbaijan. Vagifgizi was sentenced in mid-2025 on charges of financing crimes and is one of 24 journalists currently detained amid her country’s crackdown on independent media since 2023. She and two colleagues were detained that year, denied the charges, and stated in a communiqué that it was retaliation for “a series of investigations into corruption crimes committed by the country’s president and his appointed officials.”
Genet Asmamaw. Ethiopian journalist detained for three years. Courts accuse her of inciting violence through social media and other platforms, as well as mobilizing youth to overthrow the government. She will present her defense in court this May. If found guilty, Asmamaw could face the death penalty. According to the CPJ, terrorism charges are the reason for keeping the five journalists currently imprisoned in Ethiopia behind bars.
Christophe Gleizes. Independent French sports journalist imprisoned in Algeria after being detained during coverage and later convicted of glorifying terrorism and “possession of publications for propaganda of initiatives against national interests.” According to Reporters Without Borders, Gleizes is the only French journalist currently imprisoned worldwide. His seven-year prison sentence was upheld by an appeals court in 2025.
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