UN Report: Israel Intensifies Repression of Journalists and Human Rights Defenders in Palestine

SadaNews - The United Nations Office for Human Rights in the occupied Palestinian territory stated that Israel, the occupying power, has intensified its repression against journalists, human rights defenders, and anti-occupation activists, as well as local and international NGOs.

It warned that this increasingly reduces the space available to monitor and document human rights violations, pursue accountability for grievances, or organize and advocate for human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory.

The office noted in a statement issued today, Tuesday, that this severely undermines a range of human rights for Palestinians, including the right to freedom of expression, assembly, and association.

Between October 7, 2023, and December 14, 2025, the office documented the "killing of 289 journalists in Gaza due to Israeli military operations, including incidents where there are strong indications of the intentional targeting of Palestinian journalists because of their work."

Israeli occupation forces detained at least 202 Palestinian journalists from Gaza and the West Bank between October 7, 2023, and October 31, 2025, according to the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate, and 41 of them remained detained as of October 31, 2025.

The office stated that "most of these were held under administrative detention, which leads to arbitrary deprivation of liberty in the context of Israeli occupation of Palestine and exposes detainees to torture and other forms of ill-treatment and enforced disappearance." The office reported that since October 7, 2023, at least 85 Palestinians have died in occupation detention facilities.

Comprehensive Ban

As Palestinian journalists face these grim prospects, Israel continues to impose a comprehensive ban on the independent access of international journalists to Gaza, along with unjustified restrictions on the work of international media in the West Bank, according to the Human Rights Office.

It added that in April 2024, Israel enacted a law allowing its authorities to close foreign media deemed as "a threat to national security," and later issued military orders to forcibly close Al Jazeera offices in Ramallah and prohibit its broadcasts.

Widespread Repression Campaign and Unjustified Restrictions

The office pointed out that the shrinking space for independent journalism is part of a broader repression campaign against human rights defenders, anti-occupation activists, and civil society organizations, which has intensified since October 7, 2023.

It added that "the Israeli Anti-Terrorism Law of 2016 and the Defense (Emergency) Regulations of 1945 continue to be used against Palestinian NGOs to justify the raiding of their offices, restricting their funding and operations and detaining their staff."

It noted that "the vague wording of the law, loose definitions, and extensive powers granted to the state have facilitated the imposition of unjustified restrictions on Palestinians working in the field of human rights, including advocacy and peaceful mobilization."

The office stated that in the meantime, Israel imposes unjustified restrictions on the work of international NGOs.

It added that in March 2025, a joint inter-ministerial Israeli decision effectively canceled the registration of all international NGOs operating in the occupied Palestinian territory and imposed a re-registration process to obtain temporary permits under new harsh conditions. This presents a new obstacle to the humanitarian response led by the UN in Gaza and the work of many Palestinian civil society organizations throughout the occupied Palestinian territory, which rely on cooperation with international NGOs.

Violations Create Fear and Despair

The UN office also warned that the physical space available to Palestinians is also shrinking. In Gaza, Israel is trapping most Palestinians in less than half the area of the Strip, surrounded by an arbitrary "redeployment" line where Israeli ground forces remain stationed.

In the West Bank, Israel is forcibly displacing Palestinians at an unprecedented rate, emptying entire Palestinian communities of their residents, and paving the way for the expansion of Israeli settlements. The geography is being redrawn, as well as the limits of what Palestinians are allowed to say or do in response, according to the office.

Agith Songhai, head of the UN Office for Human Rights in the occupied Palestinian territory, stated: "These violations create fear and despair, depriving Palestinians of any means to convey the reality of their lives to the world, seek justice for decades of discrimination, violence, and repression, and defend a future where their human rights are protected and upheld."