On World Press Freedom Day, Pope honours journalists killed in war zones
The pope urged the rememberance of journalists who lost their lives pursuing the truth, particularly in conflict areas. Published On 3 May 20263 May 2026 Pope Leo has marked World Press Freedom Day by condemning violations of media freedom around the world and paying tribute to journalists killed while reporting in conflict zones. At the end of his weekly Sunday prayer in a sunny Saint Peter’s Square at the Vatican, the pontiff said the day highlighted both the importance of independent journalism and the growing threats faced by reporters. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list “Today we celebrate World Press Freedom Day … unfortunately, this right is often violated, sometimes in blatant ways, sometimes in more hidden forms,” he said. World Press Freedom Day, sponsored by the UN cultural agency UNESCO is intended to show support for media organisations that come under pressure or censorship. It is also an opportunity to commemorate journalists who have been killed at work. The Roman Catholic leader urged the faithful to remember journalists and reporters who have lost their lives pursuing the truth, particularly in conflict areas. “We remember the many journalists and reporters who have been victims of war and violence,” the pope said. A report last month by the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs’ Costs of War project found that Israel’s war on Gaza was the deadliest conflict for media workers ever recorded, with Israeli forces having killed 232 Palestinian journalists since October 2023. More journalists have been killed in Gaza than in both world wars, the Vietnam War, the wars in Yugoslavia, and the United States war in Afghanistan combined, the report found. Advertisement In past speeches, the leader of the Catholic Church has described journalism as a pillar of society and democracy, and information as a public good that must be safeguarded and defended. The pontiff has often thanked reporters for sharing the truth, saying that doing their job could never be considered a crime, and frequently calling for the release of journalists who have been unfairly detained or prosecuted. Last week, the leading Paris-based press freedom NGO, Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF), or Reporters Without Borders, found that freedom of the press around the world has fallen to its lowest level in a quarter of a century. For the first time since RSF started producing the index in 2002, it said more than half of the world’s countries fall into the “difficult” or “very serious” categories for press freedom – “a clear sign that journalism is increasingly criminalised worldwide”. Adblock test (Why?)
Who are the two Gaza flotilla activists abducted by Israel?
Two activists from a Gaza-bound humanitarian flotilla have been presented before an Israeli court days after they were abducted following their detention with 175 other campaigners by Israel in international waters near Greece. Spanish national Saif Abu Keshek and Brazilian Thiago Avila have been on a hunger strike during their detention although they have continued to drink water. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list The Global Sumud Flotilla comprising more than 50 vessels had set sail from France, Spain and Italy on April 12 with the aim of breaking an Israeli blockade of Gaza and bringing supplies to the devastated Palestinian territory. Gaza has been under an Israeli sea, land and air blockade since 2005, and since October 7, 2023, Israel has tightened its control over what goes in and out of the enclave – home to 2.3 million people. The activists were intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters off Greece on Thursday. All of them were released except Abu Keshek and Avila. So who are the two activists and why has Israel detained them? Here’s what we know: Who is Saif Abu Keshek? Abu Keshek is a Spanish-Swedish national of Palestinian origin who was abducted from the flotilla off Crete on Thursday. According to the website of the Global Sumud Flotilla, he is based in Barcelona and has been organising Palestinian solidarity movements across Europe for more than 20 years. He and his wife have three children, aged one, four and seven. Before joining this year’s flotilla, “Abukeshek was a lead organiser in the Global March to Gaza and currently chairs the Global Coalition Against the Occupation in Palestine and represents the Intersindical Alternativa de Catalunya (IAC),” the website noted. “He also serves on the General Secretariat of the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad and sits on the board of the European Trade Union Network for Justice in Palestine”. Advertisement After Israel intercepted the flotilla on Thursday, Abu Keshek was abducted and transferred to Shikma Prison in Ashkelon. Shikma Prison (also known as Ashkelon Prison) in southern Israel has been frequently accused of harsh treatment and torture, particularly after Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza began in 2023. Abu Keshek was subjected to torture on Saturday on an Israeli military vessel, the Global Sumud Flotilla said in a statement that was based on accounts from released activists. The Israeli human rights organisation and legal centre Adalah visited the two men in Shikma Prison in Israel on Saturday and said: “The harrowing testimonies provided by both activists reveal physical violence and being held for prolonged periods in stress positions by Israeli military forces during the past two days they have spent at sea.” Abu Keshek “reported being kept hand-tied and blindfolded, and being forced to lie face-down on the floor from the moment of his seizure until this morning, resulting in bruising to his face and hands”, it said. “Avila reported being subjected to extreme brutality by the Israeli military during the seizure of the vessels,” it added, including being “dragged face-down across the floor and beaten so severely that he passed out twice”. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez delivered a message to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a speech on Friday, saying Spain would always protect its citizens and defend international law. “We demand the release of the Spanish citizen who has been unlawfully detained by Netanyahu’s government,” he said. Israel’s action has also prompted protests and condemnation from rights groups and governments. Turkiye’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs called it an “act of piracy”. Brazilian activist Thiago Avila and Spanish activist Saif Abu Keshek at a court in Ashkelon [Ilia Yefimovich/AFP] Who is Thiago Avila? Avila is a socio-environmentalist from Brazil. According to the Global Sumud Flotilla’s website, the 38-year-old has a one-and-a-half-year-old daughter with his wife and has dedicated himself to solidarity with Palestine for more than 20 years. “He is a Steering Committee member of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition and was one of the coordinators onboard the Madleen mission that was intercepted and kidnapped by the Zionist entity in June 2025,” the website noted. Avila was put in solitary confinement in Israel’s Ayalon Prison on June 11, 2025, for several days after he was abducted during the Freedom Flotilla mission. According to the Brazilian embassy, after his recent detention in Israel in Shikma Prison, Avila reported being subjected to torture, beatings and mistreatment. Advertisement “During a monitored visit in which he was separated by glass and unable to communicate freely, embassy officials observed visible marks on his face. He reported significant pain, particularly in his shoulder,” the Global Sumud Flotilla said in a statement. What did the court say? On Sunday, the court in Ashkelon, Israel, approved a two-day extension to the detention of the activists who were brought to Israel for questioning. “The court extended their detention by two days,” said Miriam Azem, the international advocacy coordinator at Adalah, which represents the men, told the AFP news agency. Israeli authorities had earlier asked the court to extend their detention by four days. “The Global Sumud Flotilla reiterates that the forced transfer of civilians from international and European waters into custody, combined with credible allegations of torture and the absence of due process, constitutes a serious violation of international law and must be met with accountability,” the flotilla said in a statement. The organisation has also called on governments, human rights organisations, legal institutions, media outlets and civil society worldwide to demand their release. Adblock test (Why?)
Zelenskyy has no cards to play against Russia or the West
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s artistic skills have earned him the reputation of a public relations genius acknowledged by both friends and foes. United States President Donald Trump, who has openly attacked him in public, famously called the Ukrainian leader “the greatest salesman on Earth”. A much more sympathetic voice, New York Times columnist David French, has recently portrayed Zelenskyy as “the new leader of free world”. But Zelenskyy’s PR genius can do very little when it comes to changing the dynamics of the battlefield in the Russia-Ukraine war. In recent weeks, his administration and allies have tried hard to create the impression that the war might be approaching a turning point. But realities on the ground tell a different story. For example, there were official claims that in February, Ukraine made more territorial gains than Russia did. Some pro-Ukrainian war monitoring platforms have supported these claims while others have not. It is important to note these calculations can be tricky given that along the frontline there is an extensive grey zone in which control is unclear. The advances themselves are measured in 150-200 square kilometres per month. In other words, methodology can be manipulated in order to produce the desired conclusion: that Ukraine is gaining ground. In reality, there is nothing at all that suggests a significant change in the battlefield dynamics that have been in place for at least two years now. More importantly, Russian troops are currently besieging a number of industrial cities in the north of the Donetsk region. Their advances all along the northern border, in particular, are extending the active front line by hundreds of kilometres, which is making Ukraine’s personnel shortages even more acute. Advertisement Four years into the war, the Ukrainian army has had to resort to brutal campaigns to enforce mandatory conscription, pulling young men off the streets of towns and villages. Meanwhile, Russia is still able to lure volunteers by offering lavish compensation. Ukrainian officials have also claimed that Russia is losing more troops than it is able to recruit based on dubious casualty data. Zelenskyy, in particular, has stated the Russians suffered the highest number of monthly casualties in March this year – 35,000. But his statement contradicted his own Ministry of Defence, which claimed that the highest Russian monthly losses crossed 48,000 in January 2025, with an average monthly rate of roughly 35,000 throughout 2025. Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, former military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov, also contradicted this narrative that Russia is having major difficulty with deploying personnel. He acknowledged in a recent interview that the collapse of the Russian mobilisation effort was not forthcoming. It should be noted that Ukraine is waging a successful drone campaign to damage Russian oil facilities. But it is doubtful that it could change anything beyond providing dramatic footage of oil tanks on fire for TV networks to broadcast. In April, Russian oil revenues surged to $9bn, thanks to the US-Israel war on Iran. The windfall Russia got in a month is equivalent to 10 percent of the loan Ukraine is to receive from the European Union over the next two years to help fund its war effort. It cannot be denied that Russia has sustained major economic losses due to the war, and Russian President Vladimir Putin has acknowledged as much. But the Russian economy displays much the same downturn as other European economies, also affected by wars in Ukraine and Iran. Russia’s gross domestic product (GDP) per capita adjusted for purchasing power parity (an indicator reflecting living standards) currently exceeds that of less affluent EU countries, such as Romania and Greece, according to the IMF charts. The same indicator for Ukraine is on par with Mongolia and Egypt, while the country’s critical infrastructure lies in ruins and millions of Ukrainians have fled the country, most of them for good. With Ukraine’s prospects bleaker than ever, pro-Ukrainian audiences jump on every news from Russia, which they hope may signify “cracks in the regime”. Last month, an Instagram video by Russian influencer Victoria Bonya made Western headlines for its daring criticism of government policies. There may be frustration in Russia, but the regime is far from approaching a downfall. Advertisement This narrative, however, serves to distract Ukrainian and EU citizens from the painful truth that the war is heading towards a deadlock at best and Ukraine’s collapse at worst. Zelenskyy may have received a lifeline with the $90bn euro loan, but his and his allies’ lack of vision and winning strategy is staggering. The reality has already begun to kick in. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz recently suggested that Ukraine would have to concede some of its territory to Russia to end the war but get a faster track to EU membership in exchange. The EU’s defence chief, Andrius Kubilius, has gone further by claiming that NATO membership for Ukraine was out of the question and EU membership was going to be a “complicated process”. Instead, he proposed a military union of Ukraine and other European countries – an idea that Moscow will reject, interpreting it as NATO through the back door. What these contradictory statements manifest is that the main bargain over the contours of peace is currently going not so much between Zelenskyy and Putin, but between Zelenskyy and his Western, primarily European, allies. As Budanov recently claimed, the positions of Kyiv and Moscow can be moved closer to what is realistically attainable in peace talks. But Zelenskyy needs to show at least some kind of gain for Ukraine when a very unpalatable version of a peace treaty is finally signed. Ideally, that gain would be EU membership or real security guarantees, but as Merz and Kubilius’s statements suggest, the chances of attaining either are slim. The frustration among Ukrainians is already palpable. The head of the Ukrainian parliament’s fiscal committee, Danylo Hetmantsev, said European officials should stop seeing Ukrainians as “a tool for solving someone’s geopolitical tasks” or as a “human shield”. They have no right to define Ukraine’s destiny, he
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