Luis Ángel López Valdez, a crime reporter for Vanguardia de Veracruz, was fatally shot in Poza Rica, Veracruz, Mexico, hours before the 2026 World Cup opening match, amid a history of journalist killings in the country.
Israel's Navy intercepted the pro-Palestinian Second Sumud Flotilla near Crete on Thursday, detaining 175-211 activists including three journalists. Reporters Without Borders identified the journalists as Hafedh Mribah (French) and Mahmut Yavuz (Turkish) from Al Jazeera, and Alex Colston (American) from Zeteo. Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called for the EU to suspend its trade agreement with Israel, while Israeli officials dismissed the flotilla as a "PR stunt."
Reporters Without Borders has condemned Israel for detaining three journalists aboard the Gaza-bound flotilla Read Full Article at RT.com
The World Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders has recorded its lowest average score in 25 years, with more than half of 180 countries now in "difficult" or "very serious" categories. The proportion of global population living in countries with "good" press freedom has fallen from 20% in 2002 to less than 1%. The report cites expanding "restrictive legal arsenals," particularly national security laws, and warns journalism is being "increasingly criminalised" with political hostility combining with a difficult business model to "asphyxiate" established media.
