Pakistan has intensified its control over foreign media operations by extending movement restrictions to local staff, a move that has sparked significant backlash. Previously, only foreign journalists were subject to routine controls on their travel outside the major cities of Islamabad, Lahore, and Karachi. The new government guidelines, circulated widely on Sunday, mandate that Pakistani journalists, fixers, and other local employees working for foreign media outlets must now obtain government permission to travel and report outside these three urban centers.
Officials have not provided a specific reason for the tightened regulations, which come at a time of protests in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and escalating insurgencies in the country's western provinces. Human rights organizations have voiced strong concerns, with Patricia Gossman of Human Rights Watch describing the curbs as an "alarming step" that threatens independent reporting and could foster self-censorship, urging their immediate reversal.
While a government official speaking anonymously suggested the restrictions are not aimed at preventing criticism or legitimate investigative journalism, major international news organizations have expressed dismay. The Financial Times affirmed its support for journalists' ability to report freely, and the BBC stated it was "extremely concerned" and called for the restrictions to be lifted. Reuters, which also operates in Pakistan, reiterated that "Journalists should be free to report the news wherever they are."
These new measures follow earlier restrictions on foreign journalists' movement in sensitive regions like Pakistan-administered Kashmir and the insurgency-plagued provinces of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The Information Ministry posted the latest guidelines on a WhatsApp channel used for communication with foreign outlets. In a related development, a separate government notice ordered foreign media without reporting permission to leave Pakistan-administered Kashmir immediately, following multi-round regional elections marred by clashes. The website of Al Jazeera English also became inaccessible to many users in Pakistan this week.
Pakistan's press freedom record is notably poor, ranking 153rd out of 180 countries in the Reporters Without Borders 2026 index.