Ahead of World Press Freedom Day (May 3), more than 40 global media outlets are coming together as the One Free Press Coalition to bring attention to fellow journalists who are being threatened for seeking to tell the truth. This year’s “10 Most Urgent” list focuses on journalists who are targeted for “terrorism” or “anti-state” charges around the world.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the majority of journalists imprisoned as of December 1, 2025—61% of those jailed worldwide—were held on “anti-state” charges, which include accusations of terrorism or accepting funds from a foreign government.

The list is compiled in collaboration with CPJ, International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF). According to CPJ data, 330 journalists are currently behind bars worldwide in connection with their work.

In the past year, the Coalition celebrated the release of three journalists who appeared on the “10 Most Urgent” in May 2025: Vladyslav Yesypenko, who was imprisoned by the Kremlin in Russian-occupied Crimea since 2021; Shin Daewe, who had been detained in Myanmar since October 2023; and Ihar Losik, who was being held behind bars in Belarus.

The One Free Press Coalition collectively reaches an audience of more than 1 billion, using far-reaching platforms to support the following 10 individuals and their urgent cases of press persecution in 2026.

1. Reza Valizadeh (Iran)

After 16 years working as a journalist in the U.S., Iranian-American Reza Valizadeh returned to Iran in February 2024 to care for his aging parents. He claimed to have attempted to negotiate assurances from Iranian authorities for his safe return, but was repeatedly summoned and interrogated for cooperating with exile-based Persian media. He was then arrested in September 2024 in Tehran and sentenced to 10 years in prison for “collaboration with the hostile government of the United States.” Valizadeh’s health has deteriorated in detention, especially worsening of his chronic asthma during a brief transfer from Evin Prison to “dangerously overcrowded” Fashafouyeh Prison (in the words of Valizadeh’s brother) after a deadly strike on Evin during Iran’s 12-day war with Israel in 2025. CPJ reached the U.S. State Department for comment in July 2025........

© Forbes