The annual OSCE Human Dimension Conference (HDIM 2025) continues in Warsaw, Poland.
The high-level event, which started on October 6 and will run until October 17, has brought together diplomats, human rights defenders, journalists, and representatives of international organizations from all 57 OSCE participating States.
On October 8, 2025, the third panel session was dedicated to the topic “Safety of Journalists in Conflict Zones.”
Speaking at the session, Ahmad Shahidov, Director of the Azerbaijan Institute for Democracy and Human Rights, drew attention to the growing danger faced by journalists in modern wars.
He noted that at least 70 journalists and media workers have been killed in the Russia–Ukraine war, many of them while reporting from the front lines to show the reality to the world.
Ahmad Shahidov particularly recalled the tragic deaths of Ukrainian photojournalist Maks Levin and French reporter Frédéric Leclerc-Imhoff.
He then spoke about the systematic targeting of journalists in the Middle East, especially in Gaza. Referring to Al Jazeera correspondents Shireen Abu Akleh and Samer Abu Daqqa, he emphasized that these were not isolated incidents but deliberate attacks aimed at silencing the truth.
The Azerbaijani human rights activist criticized the double standards of the international community and called on the OSCE to develop practical mechanisms for the protection of journalists: “Journalists document not only war, but truth itself. Their safety means the safety of society.”
Ahmad Shahidov concluded his speech by saying: “In Ukraine and in the Middle East, journalists are being killed — but their voices must not be silenced. To protect the truth is to protect peace.”
