Ramallah – 14th April 2026 Participants in the press conference held yesterday, Tuesday, by the Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms (MADA), to present the findings of its annual report on the state of media freedoms in Palestine in 2025, recommended that media institutions collaborate to launch responsible criticism directed at the international community. This aims to challenge the prevailing environment that enables impunity and to define clear international accountability strategies supported by concrete plans, tools, and a unified vision. They also stressed the need to enhance journalists’ awareness and understanding of terminology that may be deemed threats or violations leading to arrest by Israeli authorities.
The conference was attended by numerous media organizations, civil society institutions, international organizations, and a number of Palestinian journalists.
At the outset, DR. GHAZI HANANIA, Chairman of MADA’s Board of Directors, welcomed attendees and highlighted the exceptional circumstances facing Palestinian journalism. He emphasized that MADA’s 2025 report reveals a dangerous reality for media freedoms in Palestine, documenting nine hundred fifty-seven (957) violations. He noted that these violations are no longer isolated incidents but have become a systematic approach targeting journalism at its core—through assaults, arrests, prevention of coverage, and digital restrictions—amid a troubling absence of international accountability. This reality prompted MADA to describe the year as the “Year of Silence”.
DR. HANANIA further affirmed that despite these challenges, Palestinian journalists continue to work courageously and persistently to convey the truth. He renewed his call to all relevant parties, both locally and internationally, to take serious action to protect media freedoms and hold perpetrators accountable, stressing that press freedom remains fundamental to any society striving for justice and respect for human rights.
In his remarks, DR. TALEB AWAD, a member of MADA’s Board of Directors, stressed the importance of issuing this report, noting that it reflects the significant scale of violations faced by journalists, particularly by Israeli forces.
In a speech delivered by MR. ASHRAF ABU HIYYEH from Al-Haq, he commended MADA for issuing its annual report, describing it as an important reference for international institutions in matters of accountability and combating impunity. He pointed out that journalists are subjected to severe violations during media coverage—including killings despite wearing clearly marked press vests—highlighting a clear lack of international action, particularly from the UN Security Council, regarding their protection in armed conflicts. He emphasized that the policy of impunity is the primary factor encouraging the continuation of such violations and called on media institutions and the global journalistic movement, including the International Federation of Journalists, to unify their efforts and raise their voices against this policy.
He also stressed that international humanitarian law provides a solid foundation for protecting media freedoms; however, the core issue lies in the lack of political will and effective international mechanisms to enforce these protections. He urged countries that claim to support press freedom to take concrete measures. On the internal Palestinian level, he noted that while a legal framework guaranteeing freedom of opinion and expression exists, the problem lies in practices that tend to impose restrictions rather than regulate rights. He emphasized the need to adopt an approach that ensures respect for constitutional rights, particularly in the context of state-building and ending the occupation.
For her part, MS. SHIREEN AL-KHATIB, Acting Director of MADA, presented the findings of the 2025 annual report. The center documented a total of 957 violations: Israeli forces committed 889 violations (93%), while various Palestinian entities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip were responsible for 53 violations (6%). Social media platforms accounted for nine (9) violations, while other parties were responsible for six (6). The total number of violations reflects a slight increase of 4 cases compared to 2024.
AL-KHATIB noted that Israeli violations fell into twenty (20) categories, six of which constituted the most serious, totalling 720 violations (81% of all documented Israeli violations). The most severe were the killing of 88 journalists in the Gaza Strip, most of whom were killed while performing their duties and wearing press vests. Physical assaults accounted for 17% of total Israeli violations, while detention incidents reached 89 cases—the highest number recorded in the past decade. Additionally, Israeli forces targeted 70 homes and shelters belonging to journalists in Gaza, displacing hundreds of their family members, and carried out 219 incidents of preventing or targeting media coverage.
She also indicated that violations by social media platforms remained relatively stable, with nine (9) documented cases, eight (8) of which were attributed to Meta. She suggested that the low number of reported cases may be due to journalists resorting to self-censorship or refraining from filing complaints because of the perceived ineffectiveness of such measures.
Regarding Palestinian violations, AL-KHATIB explained that they slightly decreased in 2025, with fifty-three (53) cases documented in the West Bank and Gaza compared to fifty-six (56) in 2024. However, she noted that this decline does not indicate an improvement in media freedoms at the local level, as the same patterns of violations persist.
In the West Bank, MADA documented forty (40) Palestinian violations, primarily involving arrests, summonses, interrogations, and detentions, which constituted 55% of the total violations.
In the Gaza Strip, thirteen (13) violations were documented, all occurring outside the scope of official security agencies. The most serious incident was the killing of journalist Saleh AL-JAAFRAWI, who was shot by armed groups while covering events in the Tal Al-Hawa neighbourhood.
To view the full report: https://www.madacenter.org/en/article/1566/
