Palestinian Journalist Sami Shehada, whose leg was amputated following his injury while covering events of Israel's military offensive in Nuseirat in April 2024, resumes covering events for Turkish state broadcaster TRT, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza Strip May 13, 2024. (Reuters/Doaa Rouqa)

Media organizations urge Israel to open access to Gaza

Read Time:4 Minute, 25 Second

Colombo, July 11, 2024—More than 60 media and civil society organizations have signed an open letter urging Israel to give journalists independent access to Gaza.

The organizations—which include the Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, BBC, CNN, The Guardian, The New York Times, and The Washington Post—point out that no independent media access to Gaza has been permitted since the start of the war, increasing the pressure on domestic journalists, and creating a space for mis- and disinformation to flourish.

More than 100 journalists have been killed since the start of the war and those who remain are working in conditions of extreme deprivation. The result is that information from Gaza is becoming harder and harder to obtain and that the reporting which does get through is subject to repeated questions over its veracity,” the organizations say in the letter, which was coordinated by the Committee to Protect Journalists.

The letter comes ahead of a planned visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the United States, where he is set to meet with U.S. President Joe Biden and address the U.S. Congress on July 24.

CPJ CEO Jodie Ginsberg noted: “President Netanyahu describes Israel as a democracy. His actions with regard to the media tell a different story. International, Israeli, and Palestinian journalists from outside Gaza should be given independent access to Gaza so they can judge for themselves what is happening in this war—rather than being spoon-fed with a handful of organized tours by the Israeli military.”

In addition to news outlets, the signatories—who span more than 26 countries—include professional groups and organizations dedicated to defending press freedom.

About the Committee to Protect Journalists

The Committee to Protect Journalists is an independent, nonprofit organization that promotes press freedom worldwide. We defend the right of journalists to report the news safely and without fear of reprisal.

Read the full letter below

We, the undersigned, request that Israeli authorities end immediately the restrictions on foreign media entering Gaza and grant independent access to international news organizations seeking to access the territory.

Nine months into the war, international reporters are still being denied access to Gaza except for rare and escorted trips arranged by the Israeli military. This effective ban on foreign reporting has placed an impossible and unreasonable burden on local reporters to document a war through which they are living. More than 100 journalists have been killed since the start of the war and those who remain are working in conditions of extreme deprivation. The result is that information from Gaza is becoming harder and harder to obtain and that the reporting which does get through is subject to repeated questions over its veracity.

We fully understand the inherent risks in reporting from war zones. These are risks that many of our organizations have taken over decades in order to investigate, document developments as they occur, and understand the impacts of wars the world over. 

A free and independent press is the cornerstone of democracy. We ask that Israel uphold its commitments to press freedom by providing foreign media with immediate, independent access to Gaza, and that Israel abides by its international obligations to protect journalists as civilians. 

Signatories

  1. ABC News, United States
  2. Agence France-Presse, France
  3. Alternative Press Syndicate, Lebanon
  4. Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism
  5. Asian American Journalists Association, United States
  6. Associated Press, United States
  7. Association for International Broadcasting, United Kingdom
  8. Association of Foreign Press Correspondents, United States
  9. Bangladeshi Journalists in International Media, Bangladesh
  10. BBC News, United Kingdom
  11. Bianet, Turkey
  12. Bloomberg News, United States
  13. CBS News, United States
  14. CNN Worldwide, United States
  15. CONNECTAS
  16. Community Media Forum Europe, Belgium
  17. CTV News, Canada
  18. Daily Maverick, South Africa
  19. Daraj, Lebanon
  20. Denik Referendum, Czech Republic
  21. European Broadcasting Union, Switzerland
  22. European Federation of Journalists
  23. Financial Times, United Kingdom
  24. Forbidden Stories, France
  25. fotosintesi.info, Italy
  26. Free Press Unlimited, The Netherlands
  27. Global Investigative Journalism Network
  28. Global Reporting Centre, Canada
  29. International Association of Women in Radio and Television
  30. International Center for Journalists, United States
  31. International Fund for Public Interest Media
  32. International News Safety Institute, United Kingdom
  33. International Women’s Media Foundation, United States
  34. ITN, United Kingdom
  35. Le Mauricien, Mauritius
  36. McLatchy, United States
  37. Media Development Center, Tunisia
  38. Media Diversity Institute, United Kingdom
  39. Middle East Eye
  40. National Association of Hispanic Journalists, United States
  41. National Press Club, United States
  42. National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, The Philippines
  43. NBC News, United States
  44. Nieman Foundation for Journalism, Harvard University, United States
  45. NPR, United States
  46. Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project
  47. Premium Times, Nigeria
  48. Prospect Magazine, United Kingdom
  49. Public Media Alliance
  50. Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, United States
  51. Rory Peck Trust, United Kingdom
  52. RTÉ News & Current Affairs, Ireland
  53. Rural Media Network, Pakistan
  54. Sky News, United Kingdom
  55. SMN24Media, Sri Lanka
  56. Somali Media Women Association, Somalia
  57. Sveriges Radio, Sweden
  58. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, United Kingdom
  59. The Foreign Press Association, Israel and the Palestinian Territories
  60. The Guardian, United Kingdom
  61. The Irish Times, Ireland
  62. The New York Times, United States
  63. The Washington Post, United States
  64. Twala, Algeria
  65. Vocento, Spain
  66. VRT News, Belgium
  67. Wattan Media Network, Palestine
  68. World Association for Christian Communication
  69. World Association of News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), Germany
  70. Yle News and Current Affairs, Finland

(An excerpt from the original article published on the CPJ website)

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