THE Christophe Deloisdirector general of Reporters Without Borders (RSF), died today at the age of 53, the French organization that defends press freedom around the world announced.

The French journalist died of “complications of a galloping cancer,” RSF said in a press release sent to AFP. Delois has been in office since 2012 and has “transformed the association (…) into a global champion for the defense of journalism, over twelve years,” hails RSF.

For journalist Pierre Asqui, chairman of RSF’s board, “Christophe Delois led the organization at a critical moment for the right to information. His contribution to the defense of this fundamental right was significant.”

“Journalism was his life’s struggle which he fought with unwavering commitment,” the NGO underlined.

Before heading RSF, Delois directed the Center de Formation des Journalistes (CFJ) in Paris, one of the major journalism schools in France, from 2008 to 2012. He also worked for Le Point magazine from 1998 to 2007 , in the society and politics departments as an investigative reporter. He previously worked at the ARTE and TF1 television networks.

The organization Reporters Without Borders was founded in 1985 in France and over the decades has become a spearhead for press freedom and the right to information around the world.

The NGO, based in Paris, has a presence on all continents: with offices in almost ten cities and correspondents in around 130 countries, the organization identifies and denounces obstacles to freedom of information and offers help in various ways to journalists who are imprisoned or threatened (provides legal assistance, lends bulletproof vests, exerts pressure on states and institutions, etc.).

At the international level, Christophe Delois had fought for many cases, such as the murder in Istanbul in 2018 of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi or the attacks on the freedom of the press in Russia.

In the United States, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a partner of RSF, wrote on social media X that “the world has lost a defender of press freedom.” In Washington, the National Press Club paid tribute to “Christophe, a great friend of journalists everywhere, deeply passionate about the rights of journalists”, hailing his involvement in the case of Austin Tice, an American journalist who was kidnapped and disappeared in Syria in 2012.

Delois has often warned of an increase in violence against journalists.

Since 2002, the IFRC has published an annual account of abuses committed against journalists in 180 countries. This global ranking of press freedom is a benchmark for many media outlets and international organizations.