AFPC-USA Issues Statement Responding to the Unprecedented Number of Journalists Killed in Gaza
On Wednesday, July 31, the Association of Foreign Press Correspondents in the United States (AFPC-USA) published a statement decrying the unprecedented number of journalists killed in Gaza while covering the Israel-Hamas war.
Al-Jazeera reported earlier today that its journalist Ismail al-Ghoul and cameraman Ramy El Rify were killed in an Israeli strike on Gaza City. Two members of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) acknowledged the intentionality of these targeted assassinations. The journalists “were in the area to report from near the Gaza house of Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas who was assassinated in the early hours of Wednesday in Iran’s capital, Tehran, in an attack the group has blamed on Israel,” the news outlet said.
Ismail and Rami were wearing media vests at the time of the killings. Their car also had signs identifying them as members of the press. Their deaths further amplify the dangers journalists face in Gaza, the deadliest place in the world for journalists.
Earlier this week, AFPC-USA joined such esteemed journalism and human rights groups as Amnesty International USA, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), and Reporters without Borders (RSF) in signing a letter to President Joe Biden and members of Congress to press Israel to ensure the safety of journalists in Gaza.
The complete statement is below:
The Association of Foreign Press Correspondents is the leading organization that serves the community of foreign journalists working in the US for global media from over 120 nations, covering America and the United Nations.
We are alarmed to report that the latest available data on journalists killed in the line of duty brings the total to a significantly higher number than has ever been documented before. Compare this to World War II, the largest war in recorded history, when 63 journalists were killed, the same number of journalists killed throughout the Vietnam War. Since the turn of the century, 141 journalists have been killed in Mexico, the most dangerous country in the Western Hemisphere for journalists, and now appproximately 165 correspondents and counting are dead in Gaza.
They are there not to fight, but to record the truth about the war between Israel and Hamas that has persisted in Gaza for almost 10 months with no end in sight. The sheer loss of life to this vulnerable community, either as collateral damage or intentionally targeted, has been horrific.
The international community must do something to end this bloodshed now!
