AFPC-USA Condemns Recent Killings of Palestinian Journalists, Backs International Media Blackout
The Association of Foreign Press Correspondents in the USA (AFPC-USA) condemns in the strongest terms the most recent killings of five Palestinian journalists at Nasser Medical Complex in Southern Gaza on Aug. 25 and raises our voice in support of the media blackout staged in protest Monday (Sept. 1) by more than 250 media organizations from 70 countries around the world.
The unprecedented media protest, organized by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the global campaigning movement Avaaz, went into effect Monday with many newspapers blacking out their front pages for a day or interrupting broadcast programs to condemn the continuing slaughter of Gaza’s journalists by the Israel army. The purposes of the media protest was to call on Israel to stop killing Palestinian journalists and end the impunity for crimes committed against them by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip.
The Association fully endorses the goals of the media protest Monday. In line with a call launched by RSF and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) in June, the Association advocates strongly for the four demands sought by the global media supporting this protest. They include:
The demand for protection of Palestinian journalists and accountability for crimes against them by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip.
·”The demand that foreign press and reporters be granted independent access to the Gaza Strip to cover the unfolding story.
The demand that governments across the world host Palestinian journalists who seek evacuation from Gaza.
With the opening of the 80th United Nations General Assembly taking place in a week, the demand that the international community take strong action and call on the UN Security Council to stop the Israeli army’s crimes against Palestinian journalists.”
The Association has strongly condemned the killing of journalists in Gaza, Lebanon and Israel since the start of the war in Gaza, which has gone on for a year and almost 11 months, with some Israeli hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip since the brutal Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
Throughout the war, international journalists have been banned from reporting in Gaza, and only a relatively small number have been allowed in with Israeli escorts. As the Association has underscored before, independent Gaza journalists have been a lifeline for the civilian population there, letting the world know what is happening inside the strip.
But the horrifying slaughter of Palestinian journalists continues, and the CPJ estimates as of Sept. 1, the toll of dead journalists in this war is at least 197. CPJ estimates 189 Palestinian journalists have been killed by Israel in Gaza since the start of the war, along with six Lebanese journalists and at least two Israeli journalists. The Association condemns this loss of life in the strongest possible terms.
The targeted killing of journalists is illegal under international humanitarian law. Journalists are civilians and noncombatants and must be protected. But these international norms have not protected them in Gaza. Just last month, on August 13, the Association denounced the deliberate killings of six Palestinian journalists in an intentional airstrike on their press tent in Gaza on August 10—four of them working for the Qatar-based Al Jazeera network.
Now a similar incident has occurred again on Aug. 25 when Israeli missiles fired a double strike that tore into the Nasser hospital where journalists were gathered. The AP said the first strike killed a Reuters news agency cameraman doing a live shot. The Reuters news agency said its cameraman, Husam al-Masri, was among those killed. He had been operating a live TV feed on the roof, and it shut down at the instant of the initial strike, according to the BBC. Then, minutes later Israel attacked again with a second missile hitting more journalists and healthcare workers who had gathered on a staircase to try to treat the wounded from the first attack. More than 20 people died, including medical workers and five journalists. The Associated Press said Mariam Dagga, a freelance journalist working for the agency, was also killed. The others killed were Al Jazeera's Mohammad Salama, Middle East Eye freelancer Ahmed Abu Aziz and photographer Moaz Abu Taha, who had worked with several news organizations, including Reuters.
Such so-called “double tap” strikes are despicable. The Israel Defense Forces acknowledged the strike and said they were investigating. They claimed they were targeting a Hamas camera without providing any evidence. Israeli Prime Minister called the strike “a tragic mishap.” There have been too many such statements like that without action taken to stop them from occurring or to punish those responsible afterwards.
We support the letter sent by senior editors at AP and Reuters on Aug. 25 to Israeli officials expressing their outrage and demanding that the investigation that would be “quick, thorough and provide clear answers.” The editors noted these independent journalists were simply "doing critical work bearing witness.” This work is protected by international law and especially vital in light of Israel’s nearly two-year ban on foreign journalists entering Gaza.” The Association agrees whole-heartedly.
RELATED: AFPC-USA Statement on the Killing of Al-Jazeera Journalists
