‘Facing death threats, being punished for doing our job’: Bangladesh journalists

Bangladeshi journalists say they are facing death threats, targeted surveillance, and intimidation in the run-up to Feb 2026 national elections — a crisis that deepened after mobs attacked and set fire to offices of Prothom Alo and The Daily Star on Dec 19, trapping more than two dozen media personnel inside. No journalists were killed, but those present said they were left with little doubt about what the attackers intended.

Staffers described how they were forced onto the rooftop as smoke from the arson filled the buildings. Phone signals were weak, and help took hours to arrive. “We weren’t sure we would survive the night,” said a senior journalist at The Daily Star, speaking to TOI from Dhaka. “And since then, it hasn’t felt like we got out of it. The fire was just the beginning.”




A total of 28 people, mostly journalists and staffers, were eventually rescued by firefighters and army personnel. Press freedom organisations later said the mob appeared intent on burning the journalists alive, and in some cases, actively blocked emergency responders. While those statements describe the level of threat, no deaths have been confirmed.

What followed the attack has been quieter, but no less insidious. Reporters from both national and international publications told TOI that they are now being tracked online, receiving anonymous warnings, and in some cases, being surveilled in person. Some have gone off social media altogether. “They watch our posts to see whose side we’re on,” said a journalist from Sylhet. “Especially if you’re a minority or write with any liberal perspective, you’re marked. These next two months will be dangerous.”

The attacks were sparked by protests over death of student leader Sharif Osman Hadi but quickly spiralled into a broader assault on the press. Offices were ransacked. Computers and equipment were looted or destroyed. In The Daily Star’s newsroom, editors and reporters said they had minutes to evacuate before flames reached their desks. “We could hear them breaking things downstairs,” said one editor. “We left without shutting down our systems. We didn’t look back.”

No arrests have been made. No formal investigation has reached those responsible. Rights groups, including Human Rights Watch and Access Now, have condemned the incident, warning that it signals a deeper erosion of civic space in Bangladesh. Their joint statement also criticised the state’s failure to act on rising hate speech and online harassment directed at journalists.

Chief advisor Muhammed Yunus has condemned the arson and promised to ensure safety for media professionals. But journalists on ground say the promises feel detached from reality. “It wasn’t just vandalism,” said one reporter at Prothom Alo. “It was theatre. And the State was part of the audience.”

In Dhaka, the newsrooms that were torched are operating from makeshift setups. Reporters are still filing stories, but fewer are signing bylines. “We do this job knowing there are costs,” said a Daily Star journalist. “But we were never meant to do it without protection — not from the State, not from the law, not even from the public.”

In Nepal, too, media offices have come under fire this year. During anti-govt demonstrations in Sept, protesters vandalised and set fire to the headquarters of Kantipur Media Group. A senior editor there told TOI that the trend is unmistakable: “It starts with undermining reporters, then moves to surveillance, and finally turns violent. This is not isolated. This is coordinated tolerance for impunity.”