Journalists, rights bodies condemn curbs on media freedom in Pakistan

Journalists and rights organizations have strongly condemned new restrictions on media freedom in Pakistan, specifically targeting foreign media operations. The condemnation follows the introduction of the Foreign Media Facilitation Guidelines 2026, a new set of Standard Operating Procedures.

Under these guidelines, journalists employed by foreign media outlets are now required to obtain explicit permission from the federal government before traveling to any city outside of Islamabad, Lahore, and Karachi for the purpose of news coverage.