Gaza journalists: A profession under fire

Shafaq News

2 days ago

Shafaq News – Gaza
Journalism in Gaza has become a test of endurance, with reporters facing the same dangers as the ones they cover. For nearly two years of continuous bombardment, Palestinian journalists have continued to document the war despite the risks.
According to the Palestinian Journalists' Syndicate, more than 238 media workers have been killed and 12 remain imprisoned since the war began on October 7, 2023.
Safinaz al-Louh described to Shafaq News the physical toll of her work. She had sustained multiple injuries before the current conflict, including a shattered foot from an explosion near al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, two separate fractures in her hands, and third-degree burns. She continues reporting despite losing her brother Ahmad, also a journalist, who was killed while working in a civil defense area in central Gaza.
Rami Abu Taima, Al Jazeera's correspondent in the Strip, spoke of the strain of repeated displacement, saying he has moved more than 20 times. 'I have eight daughters and a son, Sand. He is growing up surrounded by tents, illness, and displacement. Sometimes we do not see our children for months,' he told our agency, noting that more than 25 of his colleagues have been killed.
Osama al-Kahlout, reporting for Al Arabiya, remarked that the current war surpasses previous conflicts in both scale and human cost, stating, 'Famine makes it worse. One day a colleague shares bread in the tent — by morning, they are gone.'
Ahed Farwana, Secretary-General of the Palestinian Journalists' Syndicate, told Shafaq News that media workers face not only direct attacks but also arrests, injuries, the deaths of relatives, destruction of press offices, forced displacement, and shortages of food and basic equipment. He also cited a single strike that killed six journalists as the deadliest incident for the profession since the outbreak of the war.
Farwana called for international measures to protect journalists, referencing UN Security Council Resolutions 1738 and 2222, which mandate the safeguarding of media workers in conflict zones.