The daughter of Dubai’s ruler has apparently announced her divorce on social media in what would be a rare move for a princess in the United Arab Emirates.

The Instagram account of Sheikha Mahra bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the daughter of UAE Prime Minister and Dubai ruler Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, announced her intention to leave her husband, a fellow royal.

“I hereby declare our divorce,” 30-year-old Sheikha Mahra’s account posted on Instagram on Wednesday. “I divorce you, I divorce you, and I Divorce You. Take care. Your ex-wife.”

The princess appeared to be invoking the controversial practice of triple divorce that is used in some Muslim countries where a man instantly divorces his wife by declaring it three times. The method is banned in some countries and isn’t customarily invoked by women against their husbands.

Mahra married Sheikh Mana Bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, also a member of the Dubai ruling family, last year in a glamorous ceremony that was featured in magazines such as Harper’s Bazaar Arabia and Grazia. They had a daughter shortly after. Pictures of her with her husband have now been removed from her account. There are no pictures of her on Sheikh Mana’s Instagram account either.

The princess has a visible public and social media presence, often attending red carpet events in Dubai and adorning the cover of regional magazines, an unusual practice for female royals. She has almost half-a-million followers on Instagram, where she posts about her hobbies, her love for horses, her charity work as well as selfies. Her mother is Zoe Grigorakos, a Greek national, according to local media.

Some Instagram users speculated whether her account had been hacked. Both the post and the account, however, remain active more than a day since the post went up.

Ursula von der Leyen has been reelected to a second five-year term as president of the European Commission after a vote by EU lawmakers, as the continent’s mainstream seeks to reassert itself in the face of a resurgent far right.

In an earlier pitch to the European parliament in Strasbourg, France, von der Leyen on Thursday pledged to invest in infrastructure and industry, create a new “European Defense Union” and stay the course on the continent’s green transition.

After a secret ballot, von der Leyen was reelected with 401 votes in favor and 284 against. She needed more than 360 ballots to secure a majority in the 720-seat parliament.

Von der Leyen, who led the commission through the Covid-19 pandemic and the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, will now preside over a bloc that shifted rightward after last month’s European elections, when far-right parties won a record number of seats.

Addressing the parliament before the lunchtime vote, von der Leyen said the next five years of her term “will define Europe’s place in the world for the next five decades. It will decide whether we shape our own future or let it be shaped by events or by others.”

Von der Leyen, a 65-year-old German national, was parachuted into the presidential candidacy process as a compromise candidate in 2019, but has since become one of Europe’s most solid pillars. Several of the continent’s other leaders – from Germany’s former Chancellor Angela Merkel to French President Emmanuel Macron – have retired or been weakened by domestic politics.

Von der Leyen’s own position was somewhat diminished by last month’s election, which saw a surge in support for the far right and saw Brussels’ center ground shrink.

Her reelection was not certain but widely expected, after she was proposed by EU leaders and could rely on the support of her center-right European People’s Party (EPP), as well as the center-left Socialist and Democrats (S&D) and liberal Renew blocs. Shortly before Thursday’s vote, the Green bloc also announced it would support her.

Earlier Thursday, von der Leyen published a 31-page policy proposal, setting out her priorities if she won a second term.

Echoing remarks she made after last month’s vote, she stressed “it is essential that the democratic center in Europe holds” in the face of resurgent extremes, calling on mainstream parties to “live up to the scale of the concerns and the challenges that people face in their lives.”

Von der Leyen pledged to “turbo charge investment” needed by cash-strapped EU governments for their “green, digital and social transition.”

She also vowed to create a European Defense Union and appoint a commissioner for defense, a new role for the bloc that was forged in peacetime but has since had to respond to Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine, and the prospect of a Donald Trump-led United States retreating from the world stage.

Under the proposed new defense union, member states will retain responsibility for their own troops, but will work more closely with others to “coordinate efforts to strengthen the defense industrial base.” She also proposed a Europe-wide air defense system and cyber protection measures.

Speaking in Strasbourg before her reelection, von der Leyen said Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s recent trip to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin was “an appeasement mission,” and pledged to maintain EU support for Ukraine.

Von der Leyen’s reelection comes a day after the EU’s second-highest court delivered an unusual rebuke to the commission, ruling it was not transparent enough about the contracts it signed for Covid-19 vaccines during the pandemic.

Ursula von der Leyen has been reelected to a second five-year term as president of the European Commission after a vote by EU lawmakers, as the continent’s mainstream seeks to reassert itself in the face of a resurgent far right.

In an earlier pitch to the European parliament in Strasbourg, France, von der Leyen on Thursday pledged to invest in infrastructure and industry, create a new “European Defense Union” and stay the course on the continent’s green transition.

After a secret ballot, von der Leyen was reelected with 401 votes in favor and 284 against. She needed more than 360 ballots to secure a majority in the 720-seat parliament.

Von der Leyen, who led the commission through the Covid-19 pandemic and the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, will now preside over a bloc that shifted rightward after last month’s European elections, when far-right parties won a record number of seats.

Addressing the parliament before the lunchtime vote, von der Leyen said the next five years of her term “will define Europe’s place in the world for the next five decades. It will decide whether we shape our own future or let it be shaped by events or by others.”

Von der Leyen, a 65-year-old German national, was parachuted into the presidential candidacy process as a compromise candidate in 2019, but has since become one of Europe’s most solid pillars. Several of the continent’s other leaders – from Germany’s former Chancellor Angela Merkel to French President Emmanuel Macron – have retired or been weakened by domestic politics.

Von der Leyen’s own position was somewhat diminished by last month’s election, which saw a surge in support for the far right and saw Brussels’ center ground shrink.

Her reelection was not certain but widely expected, after she was proposed by EU leaders and could rely on the support of her center-right European People’s Party (EPP), as well as the center-left Socialist and Democrats (S&D) and liberal Renew blocs. Shortly before Thursday’s vote, the Green bloc also announced it would support her.

Earlier Thursday, von der Leyen published a 31-page policy proposal, setting out her priorities if she won a second term.

Echoing remarks she made after last month’s vote, she stressed “it is essential that the democratic center in Europe holds” in the face of resurgent extremes, calling on mainstream parties to “live up to the scale of the concerns and the challenges that people face in their lives.”

Von der Leyen pledged to “turbo charge investment” needed by cash-strapped EU governments for their “green, digital and social transition.”

She also vowed to create a European Defense Union and appoint a commissioner for defense, a new role for the bloc that was forged in peacetime but has since had to respond to Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine, and the prospect of a Donald Trump-led United States retreating from the world stage.

Under the proposed new defense union, member states will retain responsibility for their own troops, but will work more closely with others to “coordinate efforts to strengthen the defense industrial base.” She also proposed a Europe-wide air defense system and cyber protection measures.

Speaking in Strasbourg before her reelection, von der Leyen said Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s recent trip to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin was “an appeasement mission,” and pledged to maintain EU support for Ukraine.

Von der Leyen’s reelection comes a day after the EU’s second-highest court delivered an unusual rebuke to the commission, ruling it was not transparent enough about the contracts it signed for Covid-19 vaccines during the pandemic.

Ursula von der Leyen has been reelected to a second five-year term as president of the European Commission after a vote by EU lawmakers, as the continent’s mainstream seeks to reassert itself in the face of a resurgent far right.

In an earlier pitch to the European parliament in Strasbourg, France, von der Leyen on Thursday pledged to invest in infrastructure and industry, create a new “European Defense Union” and stay the course on the continent’s green transition.

After a secret ballot, von der Leyen was reelected with 401 votes in favor and 284 against. She needed more than 360 ballots to secure a majority in the 720-seat parliament.

Von der Leyen, who led the commission through the Covid-19 pandemic and the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, will now preside over a bloc that shifted rightward after last month’s European elections, when far-right parties won a record number of seats.

Addressing the parliament before the lunchtime vote, von der Leyen said the next five years of her term “will define Europe’s place in the world for the next five decades. It will decide whether we shape our own future or let it be shaped by events or by others.”

Von der Leyen, a 65-year-old German national, was parachuted into the presidential candidacy process as a compromise candidate in 2019, but has since become one of Europe’s most solid pillars. Several of the continent’s other leaders – from Germany’s former Chancellor Angela Merkel to French President Emmanuel Macron – have retired or been weakened by domestic politics.

Von der Leyen’s own position was somewhat diminished by last month’s election, which saw a surge in support for the far right and saw Brussels’ center ground shrink.

Her reelection was not certain but widely expected, after she was proposed by EU leaders and could rely on the support of her center-right European People’s Party (EPP), as well as the center-left Socialist and Democrats (S&D) and liberal Renew blocs. Shortly before Thursday’s vote, the Green bloc also announced it would support her.

Earlier Thursday, von der Leyen published a 31-page policy proposal, setting out her priorities if she won a second term.

Echoing remarks she made after last month’s vote, she stressed “it is essential that the democratic center in Europe holds” in the face of resurgent extremes, calling on mainstream parties to “live up to the scale of the concerns and the challenges that people face in their lives.”

Von der Leyen pledged to “turbo charge investment” needed by cash-strapped EU governments for their “green, digital and social transition.”

She also vowed to create a European Defense Union and appoint a commissioner for defense, a new role for the bloc that was forged in peacetime but has since had to respond to Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine, and the prospect of a Donald Trump-led United States retreating from the world stage.

Under the proposed new defense union, member states will retain responsibility for their own troops, but will work more closely with others to “coordinate efforts to strengthen the defense industrial base.” She also proposed a Europe-wide air defense system and cyber protection measures.

Speaking in Strasbourg before her reelection, von der Leyen said Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s recent trip to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin was “an appeasement mission,” and pledged to maintain EU support for Ukraine.

Von der Leyen’s reelection comes a day after the EU’s second-highest court delivered an unusual rebuke to the commission, ruling it was not transparent enough about the contracts it signed for Covid-19 vaccines during the pandemic.

Ursula von der Leyen has been reelected to a second five-year term as president of the European Commission after a vote by EU lawmakers, as the continent’s mainstream seeks to reassert itself in the face of a resurgent far right.

In an earlier pitch to the European parliament in Strasbourg, France, von der Leyen on Thursday pledged to invest in infrastructure and industry, create a new “European Defense Union” and stay the course on the continent’s green transition.

After a secret ballot, von der Leyen was reelected with 401 votes in favor and 284 against. She needed more than 360 ballots to secure a majority in the 720-seat parliament.

Von der Leyen, who led the commission through the Covid-19 pandemic and the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, will now preside over a bloc that shifted rightward after last month’s European elections, when far-right parties won a record number of seats.

Addressing the parliament before the lunchtime vote, von der Leyen said the next five years of her term “will define Europe’s place in the world for the next five decades. It will decide whether we shape our own future or let it be shaped by events or by others.”

Von der Leyen, a 65-year-old German national, was parachuted into the presidential candidacy process as a compromise candidate in 2019, but has since become one of Europe’s most solid pillars. Several of the continent’s other leaders – from Germany’s former Chancellor Angela Merkel to French President Emmanuel Macron – have retired or been weakened by domestic politics.

Von der Leyen’s own position was somewhat diminished by last month’s election, which saw a surge in support for the far right and saw Brussels’ center ground shrink.

Her reelection was not certain but widely expected, after she was proposed by EU leaders and could rely on the support of her center-right European People’s Party (EPP), as well as the center-left Socialist and Democrats (S&D) and liberal Renew blocs. Shortly before Thursday’s vote, the Green bloc also announced it would support her.

Earlier Thursday, von der Leyen published a 31-page policy proposal, setting out her priorities if she won a second term.

Echoing remarks she made after last month’s vote, she stressed “it is essential that the democratic center in Europe holds” in the face of resurgent extremes, calling on mainstream parties to “live up to the scale of the concerns and the challenges that people face in their lives.”

Von der Leyen pledged to “turbo charge investment” needed by cash-strapped EU governments for their “green, digital and social transition.”

She also vowed to create a European Defense Union and appoint a commissioner for defense, a new role for the bloc that was forged in peacetime but has since had to respond to Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine, and the prospect of a Donald Trump-led United States retreating from the world stage.

Under the proposed new defense union, member states will retain responsibility for their own troops, but will work more closely with others to “coordinate efforts to strengthen the defense industrial base.” She also proposed a Europe-wide air defense system and cyber protection measures.

Speaking in Strasbourg before her reelection, von der Leyen said Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s recent trip to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin was “an appeasement mission,” and pledged to maintain EU support for Ukraine.

Von der Leyen’s reelection comes a day after the EU’s second-highest court delivered an unusual rebuke to the commission, ruling it was not transparent enough about the contracts it signed for Covid-19 vaccines during the pandemic.

Ursula von der Leyen has been reelected to a second five-year term as president of the European Commission after a vote by EU lawmakers, as the continent’s mainstream seeks to reassert itself in the face of a resurgent far right.

In an earlier pitch to the European parliament in Strasbourg, France, von der Leyen on Thursday pledged to invest in infrastructure and industry, create a new “European Defense Union” and stay the course on the continent’s green transition.

After a secret ballot, von der Leyen was reelected with 401 votes in favor and 284 against. She needed more than 360 ballots to secure a majority in the 720-seat parliament.

Von der Leyen, who led the commission through the Covid-19 pandemic and the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, will now preside over a bloc that shifted rightward after last month’s European elections, when far-right parties won a record number of seats.

Addressing the parliament before the lunchtime vote, von der Leyen said the next five years of her term “will define Europe’s place in the world for the next five decades. It will decide whether we shape our own future or let it be shaped by events or by others.”

Von der Leyen, a 65-year-old German national, was parachuted into the presidential candidacy process as a compromise candidate in 2019, but has since become one of Europe’s most solid pillars. Several of the continent’s other leaders – from Germany’s former Chancellor Angela Merkel to French President Emmanuel Macron – have retired or been weakened by domestic politics.

Von der Leyen’s own position was somewhat diminished by last month’s election, which saw a surge in support for the far right and saw Brussels’ center ground shrink.

Her reelection was not certain but widely expected, after she was proposed by EU leaders and could rely on the support of her center-right European People’s Party (EPP), as well as the center-left Socialist and Democrats (S&D) and liberal Renew blocs. Shortly before Thursday’s vote, the Green bloc also announced it would support her.

Earlier Thursday, von der Leyen published a 31-page policy proposal, setting out her priorities if she won a second term.

Echoing remarks she made after last month’s vote, she stressed “it is essential that the democratic center in Europe holds” in the face of resurgent extremes, calling on mainstream parties to “live up to the scale of the concerns and the challenges that people face in their lives.”

Von der Leyen pledged to “turbo charge investment” needed by cash-strapped EU governments for their “green, digital and social transition.”

She also vowed to create a European Defense Union and appoint a commissioner for defense, a new role for the bloc that was forged in peacetime but has since had to respond to Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine, and the prospect of a Donald Trump-led United States retreating from the world stage.

Under the proposed new defense union, member states will retain responsibility for their own troops, but will work more closely with others to “coordinate efforts to strengthen the defense industrial base.” She also proposed a Europe-wide air defense system and cyber protection measures.

Speaking in Strasbourg before her reelection, von der Leyen said Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s recent trip to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin was “an appeasement mission,” and pledged to maintain EU support for Ukraine.

Von der Leyen’s reelection comes a day after the EU’s second-highest court delivered an unusual rebuke to the commission, ruling it was not transparent enough about the contracts it signed for Covid-19 vaccines during the pandemic.

Ursula von der Leyen has been reelected to a second five-year term as president of the European Commission after a vote by EU lawmakers, as the continent’s mainstream seeks to reassert itself in the face of a resurgent far right.

In an earlier pitch to the European parliament in Strasbourg, France, von der Leyen on Thursday pledged to invest in infrastructure and industry, create a new “European Defense Union” and stay the course on the continent’s green transition.

After a secret ballot, von der Leyen was reelected with 401 votes in favor and 284 against. She needed more than 360 ballots to secure a majority in the 720-seat parliament.

Von der Leyen, who led the commission through the Covid-19 pandemic and the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, will now preside over a bloc that shifted rightward after last month’s European elections, when far-right parties won a record number of seats.

Addressing the parliament before the lunchtime vote, von der Leyen said the next five years of her term “will define Europe’s place in the world for the next five decades. It will decide whether we shape our own future or let it be shaped by events or by others.”

Von der Leyen, a 65-year-old German national, was parachuted into the presidential candidacy process as a compromise candidate in 2019, but has since become one of Europe’s most solid pillars. Several of the continent’s other leaders – from Germany’s former Chancellor Angela Merkel to French President Emmanuel Macron – have retired or been weakened by domestic politics.

Von der Leyen’s own position was somewhat diminished by last month’s election, which saw a surge in support for the far right and saw Brussels’ center ground shrink.

Her reelection was not certain but widely expected, after she was proposed by EU leaders and could rely on the support of her center-right European People’s Party (EPP), as well as the center-left Socialist and Democrats (S&D) and liberal Renew blocs. Shortly before Thursday’s vote, the Green bloc also announced it would support her.

Earlier Thursday, von der Leyen published a 31-page policy proposal, setting out her priorities if she won a second term.

Echoing remarks she made after last month’s vote, she stressed “it is essential that the democratic center in Europe holds” in the face of resurgent extremes, calling on mainstream parties to “live up to the scale of the concerns and the challenges that people face in their lives.”

Von der Leyen pledged to “turbo charge investment” needed by cash-strapped EU governments for their “green, digital and social transition.”

She also vowed to create a European Defense Union and appoint a commissioner for defense, a new role for the bloc that was forged in peacetime but has since had to respond to Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine, and the prospect of a Donald Trump-led United States retreating from the world stage.

Under the proposed new defense union, member states will retain responsibility for their own troops, but will work more closely with others to “coordinate efforts to strengthen the defense industrial base.” She also proposed a Europe-wide air defense system and cyber protection measures.

Speaking in Strasbourg before her reelection, von der Leyen said Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s recent trip to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin was “an appeasement mission,” and pledged to maintain EU support for Ukraine.

Von der Leyen’s reelection comes a day after the EU’s second-highest court delivered an unusual rebuke to the commission, ruling it was not transparent enough about the contracts it signed for Covid-19 vaccines during the pandemic.

Germany plans to halve its military aid to Ukraine next year, despite concerns that US support for Kyiv could potentially diminish if Republican candidate Donald Trump returns to the White House.

German aid to Ukraine will be cut to €4 billion ($4.35 billion) in 2025 from around €8 billion in 2024, according to a draft of the 2025 budget seen by Reuters.

Germany hopes Ukraine will be able to meet the bulk of its military needs with the $50 billion in loans from the proceeds of frozen Russian assets approved by the Group of Seven, and that funds earmarked for armaments will not be fully used.

“Ukraine’s financing is secured for the foreseeable future thanks to European instruments and the G7 loans,” German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said on Wednesday at a news conference.

Washington pushed to “front load” the loans to give Ukraine a big lump sum now.

Officials say EU leaders agreed to the idea in part because it reduces the chance of Ukraine being short of funds if Trump returns to the White House.

Alarm bells rang across Europe this week after Trump picked Senator JD Vance, who opposes military aid for Ukraine and warned Europe will have to rely less on the United States to defend the continent, as his candidate for vice president.

Trump sparked fierce criticism from Western officials for suggesting he would not protect countries that failed to meet the transatlantic military alliance’s defense spending targets and would even encourage Russia to attack them.

Germany has faced criticism for repeatedly missing a NATO target of spending 2% of its economic output on defense.

Depleted military stocks

The stocks of Germany’s armed forces, already run down by decades of underinvestment, have been further depleted by arms supplies to Kyiv.

So far, Berlin has donated three Patriot air defense units to Kyiv, more than any other country, bringing down the number of Patriot systems in Germany to nine.

Germany’s fractious coalition of left-leaning Social Democrats, pro-business liberals and ecologist Greens has struggled to comply with NATO’s spending target due to self-imposed rules that limit the amount of state borrowing they can take on.

Although military aid to Ukraine will be cut, Germany will comply with the NATO target of spending 2% of GDP on defense in 2025, with a total of €75.3 billion.

Days after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a “Zeitenwende” – German for historic turning point – with a €100 billion special fund to bring the military up to speed.

From this special fund, there will be €22.0 billion more for defense, plus €53.3 billion in the regular budget, still less than that sought by Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.

The defense budget is set to receive a meagre €1.3 billion more than in 2024, far below the €6.7 billion requested by Pistorius.

As ever-increasing annual operating costs outpace this rise, the defense ministry is being forced to cut ammunition orders for 2025 by more than half, reduce procurement by €260 million and research and development by over €200 million.

The budget for 2025 comes with the mid-term financial planning until 2028, the year when the armed forces’ special fund to meet NATO’s minimum spending goals is due to run out and 80 billion will be needed for defense, as noted in the financial plan.

In 2028, there is a gap of €39 billion in the regular budget, of which €28 billion are needed to comply with the NATO target without the special fund, sources from the finance ministry said.

Decisions on how the hole will be plugged are not likely to be taken until after the 2025 election.

“The 80 billion euros that have been put on display for 2028 simply do not exist,” said Ingo Gaedechens, member of the parliament’s budget committee from the conservative opposition party CDU.

“The coalition is not even trying to cover this up but are openly admitting it.”

A Wall Street Journal reporter in Hong Kong said she was fired after being elected to lead a press union that has come under attack by Beijing amid a national security crackdown.

Selina Cheng, who was elected chair of the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA) on June 22, said in a statement posted Wednesday on X that she had been terminated from her job covering China’s car sector earlier in the day.

Her London-based supervisor at The Journal had asked her last month to withdraw from the election, she added.

“The editor said employees of the Journal should not be seen as advocating for press freedom in a place like Hong Kong, even though they can in Western countries, where it is already established,” Cheng said in the statement.

She quoted her supervisor as saying having Journal employees advocate for media freedoms would create conflicts of interest because the newspaper reports on related topics, including the ongoing trials of Hong Kong journalists and media organizations.

“I am disappointed if these editors abroad have come to think press freedom is a controversial issue, as those who wish to intimidate reporters might like us to believe,” she said. “It is not.”

The HKJA, a trade union established in 1968, has come under increasing pressure from authorities in recent years. Both Hong Kong officials and Beijing state media have accused it of siding with protesters during the anti-government demonstrations in 2019, a charge the association has denied.

For decades before the protests, the group was seen as a thriving symbol of Hong Kong’s cherished personal freedoms, which marked a sharp contrast with the highly regulated media landscape in mainland China.

But critics have increasingly bemoaned the territory’s shrinking press freedoms since Beijing imposed a national security on Hong Kong after the 2019 protests. They cite the closure of multiple news outlets and cases of editors being put on trial. Amid a wider crackdown on civil liberties, many opposition figures were rounded up to face trial, with civil groups forced to disband.

Cheng said Gordon Fairclough, The Journal’s world coverage chief, flew in from the UK to deliver her dismissal in person, explaining that her job had been eliminated due to restructuring.

“The Wall Street Journal has been and continues to be a fierce and vocal advocate for press freedom in Hong Kong and around the world,” he said.

For months, the newspaper has been running a worldwide campaign calling for the release of Evan Gershkovich, a Journal reporter who has been detained in Russia for more than a year accused of spying for the CIA.

“This is why I am deeply shocked that senior editors at the paper would actively violate their employees’ human rights, by preventing them from advocating for freedoms the Journal’s reporters rely on to work, in a place where journalists and their rights are under threat,” Cheng wrote.

She plans to continue to lead the HKJA.

A Wall Street Journal reporter in Hong Kong said she was fired after being elected to lead a press union that has come under attack by Beijing amid a national security crackdown.

Selina Cheng, who was elected chair of the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA) on June 22, said in a statement posted Wednesday on X that she had been terminated from her job covering China’s car sector earlier in the day.

Her London-based supervisor at The Journal had asked her last month to withdraw from the election, she added.

“The editor said employees of the Journal should not be seen as advocating for press freedom in a place like Hong Kong, even though they can in Western countries, where it is already established,” Cheng said in the statement.

She quoted her supervisor as saying having Journal employees advocate for media freedoms would create conflicts of interest because the newspaper reports on related topics, including the ongoing trials of Hong Kong journalists and media organizations.

“I am disappointed if these editors abroad have come to think press freedom is a controversial issue, as those who wish to intimidate reporters might like us to believe,” she said. “It is not.”

The HKJA, a trade union established in 1968, has come under increasing pressure from authorities in recent years. Both Hong Kong officials and Beijing state media have accused it of siding with protesters during the anti-government demonstrations in 2019, a charge the association has denied.

For decades before the protests, the group was seen as a thriving symbol of Hong Kong’s cherished personal freedoms, which marked a sharp contrast with the highly regulated media landscape in mainland China.

But critics have increasingly bemoaned the territory’s shrinking press freedoms since Beijing imposed a national security on Hong Kong after the 2019 protests. They cite the closure of multiple news outlets and cases of editors being put on trial. Amid a wider crackdown on civil liberties, many opposition figures were rounded up to face trial, with civil groups forced to disband.

Cheng said Gordon Fairclough, The Journal’s world coverage chief, flew in from the UK to deliver her dismissal in person, explaining that her job had been eliminated due to restructuring.

“The Wall Street Journal has been and continues to be a fierce and vocal advocate for press freedom in Hong Kong and around the world,” he said.

For months, the newspaper has been running a worldwide campaign calling for the release of Evan Gershkovich, a Journal reporter who has been detained in Russia for more than a year accused of spying for the CIA.

“This is why I am deeply shocked that senior editors at the paper would actively violate their employees’ human rights, by preventing them from advocating for freedoms the Journal’s reporters rely on to work, in a place where journalists and their rights are under threat,” Cheng wrote.

She plans to continue to lead the HKJA.