Pakistan media faces 233 attacks: PPF report ahead of Press Freedom Day
Synopsis
At least 233 journalists were targeted in Pakistan in just 16 months — assaulted, arrested, and harassed through a cybercrime law critics say was bulldozed through parliament. With AI-generated content now weaponised against women in the press, and lawyers who defended journalists handed 17-year sentences, the PPF's findings ahead of World Press Freedom Day 2026 paint a picture of a media environment under coordinated siege.
Key Takeaways
The Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) documented at least 233 incidents targeting journalists between January 2025 and April 2026 .
Incidents included 67 assaults, 67 criminal complaints, 11 arrests, 11 detentions , and 3 kidnappings .
34 of 67 criminal complaints invoked the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) , amended in early 2025 without stakeholder consultation.
Human rights lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chattha were sentenced to 17 years under PECA after representing journalists.
AI-generated videos were used to target women journalists, including Benazir Shah , in November 2025 .
The government allegedly withheld official ads from Dawn and Sahafat as financial pressure; a federal journalist protection commission was set up in November 2025 but its effectiveness remains in question.
Media in Pakistan has been subjected to systematic legal pressure, physical violence, digital harassment, and financial coercion, according to a damning new report released by the Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) ahead of World Press Freedom Day 2026. The report documented at least 233 incidents of journalists being targeted between January 2025 and April 2026, encompassing 67 assaults, 67 criminal complaints, 11 arrests, 11 detentions, and three kidnappings, according to local media reports.
PECA: The Law Weaponised Against Journalists
The Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) emerges as the central instrument of press suppression in the PPF's findings. Amended at the start of 2025 and, in PPF's own words,
Point of View
Financial strangulation alongside digital harassment, and now AI weaponised against women journalists. The 17-year sentence handed to lawyers who defended press freedom cases is a signal, not an aberration — it tells every journalist exactly what the cost of inconvenient reporting could be. Pakistan's new journalist protection commission risks becoming window dressing unless it is given genuine independence and enforcement teeth, something the report pointedly flags but the government has yet to demonstrate.
NationPress
3 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did the Pakistan Press Foundation report on media freedom reveal?
The PPF report documented at least 233 incidents targeting journalists in Pakistan between January 2025 and April 2026, including 67 assaults, 67 criminal complaints, 11 arrests, 11 detentions, and three kidnappings. It was released ahead of World Press Freedom Day 2026 and highlighted legal, physical, digital, and financial threats against the press.
What is PECA and how is it being used against journalists in Pakistan?
PECA — the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act — was amended in early 2025 and, according to the PPF, passed without stakeholder consultation. Of the 67 criminal complaints documented, 34 invoked PECA, making it the most commonly used legal instrument against journalists. Summons from the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) have become a recurring tool of pressure.
Who are Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chattha?
They are human rights lawyers who represented journalists in PECA cases and were subsequently sentenced to 17 years in prison under the same legislation. Their sentencing is cited in the PPF report as emblematic of the climate of legal intimidation surrounding press freedom in Pakistan.
How are women journalists being targeted in Pakistan?
The PPF documented multiple instances in 2025–26 where AI-generated fabricated videos and images of female journalists were circulated online. In November 2025, journalist Benazir Shah reported that an AI-generated video of her was shared by an account followed by the federal information minister. The PPF noted these attacks aim to destroy personal reputation through gendered means.
What is the federal Commission for the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals?
It is a body established by Pakistan's federal government in November 2025 to protect journalists and media professionals. The PPF described its creation as a welcome step but cautioned that it must be made genuinely functional with adequate resources and real independence to have meaningful impact.
