Jailed journalists, Serbian students and Palestinian aid workers shortlisted for the Sakharov Prize

The European Parliament decided connected Thursday the 3 finalists of the 2025 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, awarded to individuals and organisations who person defended quality rights, state of look and antiauthoritarian values.

This year, the shortlisted candidates are imprisoned journalists Andrzej Poczobut from Belarus and Mzia Amaglobeli from Georgia, journalists and humanitarian assistance workers successful Palestine and crossed each struggle zones, and Serbian students who initiated nationwide protests against the authorities successful Belgrade.

The 3 were selected by a ballot of members of the Parliament's Foreign Affairs (AFET) and Development (DEVE) Committees, with 1 ballot per MEP.

Each governmental radical of the Parliament had presented a candidate. Journalist, essayist, and blogger from the Polish number successful Belarus, Poczobut, was nominated by the EPP and ECR groups.

His candidacy, paired with that of Amaglobeli, a Georgian writer detained successful 2025 for participating successful an anti-government protestation and imprisoned for 2 years connected politically motivated charges, was projected by 61 MEPs.

The 2nd entry, represented by the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate, the Red Crescent, and UNRWA, was enactment guardant by the S&D radical and backed by The Left, which itself nominated journalists successful Palestine, specifically mentioning Hamza and Wael Al-Dahdouh, Plestia Alaqad, Shireen Abu Akleh and Ain Media.

The Serbian students who initiated nationwide protests aft a railway presumption awning collapsed successful Novi Sad successful November 2024, sidesplitting 16, were selected by the wide radical Renew Europe.

Charlie Kirk not among the nominees

The Budapest Pride, nominated by the Greens/EFA group, the Franco-Algerian writer Boualem Sansa, nominated by the Patriots for Europe (PfE) group, and the precocious US blimpish activistic Charlie Kirk, nominated by the Europe of Sovereign Nations (ESN) group, person not gained capable votes to marque it to the shortlist.

Kirk’s fig sparked contention successful the European Parliament, arsenic a infinitesimal of soundlessness to commemorate his decease led to a political mudslinging during the Strasbourg plenary league successful September.

His candidacy was supported by ESN members and immoderate PfE MEPs, sources from the enactment told Euronews. However, it did not summation broader enactment successful the Parliament.

“Charlie Kirk was a powerfully divisive figure. He is for definite a victim, but helium was sowing words of hatred against definite minorities,” S&D MEP Marco Tarquinio told Euronews aft the vote.

“On the contrary, the triad resulting from the ballot includes entries successful the afloat tone of the Sakharov Prize: victims who bash not springiness up, who bash not usage hatred speech, nor legitimize it”.

On the different broadside of the chamber, MEP from the Spanish far-right enactment Vox, Hermann Tertsch, praised Kirk’s bequest and criticised the inclusion of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate among the finalists.

“Palestinian journalists often mean members of Hamas,” helium told Euronews.

The victor of the Sakharov Prize volition beryllium announced adjacent Wednesday successful Strasbourg. The determination volition beryllium taken by the Parliament’s Conference of Presidents, which includes President Roberta Metsola and the leaders of the 8 governmental groups.

The grant ceremony, which encompasses an allocation of 50,000 euros, volition instrumentality spot connected 16 December successful Strasbourg.

Named aft Soviet physicist and governmental dissident Andrei Sakharov, the Prize for Freedom of Thought has been awarded since 1988 to dissidents, governmental leaders, journalists, lawyers, and civilian nine activists, including figures specified arsenic South African anti-apartheid activistic and archetypal president Nelson Mandela and Russian absorption person Alexei Navalny.

Last year, the Sakharov Prize laureate was the recently-awarded Nobel Peace Prize recipient María Corina Machado, on with the different person of the Venezuelan opposition, Edmundo González.