Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) is outraged by the killing of five journalists in Gaza on August 25 in Israeli strikes at the Nasser Hospital. Israel must be held accountable for the horrific, continued violence against media professionals, and the latest killings must be investigated conclusively. We urge the international community to ensure that the continued violence, including killings, starvation, and lack of access, being used by Israel to silence journalists in Gaza, is brought to an end. The blatant, continued, and unparalleled targeting of journalists by Israel is a litmus test for the international community, which must show that it stands by a free press and journalists’ safety.
The slain journalists include a Reuters contractor cameraman Hussam al-Masri, a freelance photojournalist with Associated Press and Independent Arabia, Mariam Abu Dagga, Al Jazeera camera operator Mohammed Salama, freelance video journalist Moaz Abu Taha and freelance journalist Ahmed Abu Aziz.
The latest killings are the latest in the continued violence against journalists in Gaza since October 2023. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), 197 journalists and media workers have been killed during the war, of whom 189 were Palestinians killed by Israel in Gaza. This is an entirely unacceptable and alarmingly high figure.
PPF wholly endorses and reiterates Reporters Without Borders (RSF) call for an emergency United Nations Security Council Meeting.
On August 21, the Media Freedom Coalition (MFC) urged Israel to allow immediate independent foreign media access and afford protection for journalists operating in Gaza.
“Journalists and media workers play an essential role in putting the spotlight on the devastating reality of war. Access to conflict zones is vital to carrying out this role effectively. We oppose all attempts to restrict press freedom and block entry to journalists during conflicts,” read the statement, adding: “We also strongly condemn all violence directed against journalists and media workers, especially the extremely high number of fatalities, arrests, and detentions.”
So far, 30 MFC member states have signed on.
Earlier in August, press freedom organizations called for an end to the forced starvation and targeting of journalists in Gaza by Israel.
“Journalists in Gaza are being starved to death. Not metaphorically. Not slowly. But deliberately, and in real time, while the world watches.
“One in three people in Gaza now goes days without food. Among the starving are journalists, the last independent voices still reporting from inside Gaza. These are the individuals whose courage keeps the world informed of the sheer humanitarian impact of Israel’s war on Gaza. Now, they are being forced to die from hunger.
“This is not incidental. This is a tactic. The suffering of journalists is not an accident; Israel is employing deliberate tactics to silence the truth by starving them,” read the joint letter.
