Latest news with #UsufChikte
Eyewitness News
5 days ago
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Activists gather outside St George's Cathedral to honour journalists killed in Gaza
CAPE TOWN - A vigil is being held outside St George's Cathedral to honour the journalists who have been killed in Gaza. Journalists and activists have gathered outside the Church to show solidarity and to remember the media workers killed since October 7, 2023. According to the International Federation of Journalists, more than 270 journalists and media workers have been killed since the beginning of the conflict. Activists and journalists made their way to the steps of St George's Cathedral. Palestinian flags and posters are being held high by those who have come to pay their respects to the journalists who have lost their lives in the conflict. Some motorists showed support by hooting as they drove passed the oldest cathedral in Southern Africa. Demonstrators also chanted on the steps of the cathedral, calling for more to be done for the people of Palestine The chairperson from the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign, Usuf Chikte, said they are also strongly opposed to what he said is the deliberate starvation and killing of Palestinians and journalists. "And we are standing here in defence of humanity to oppose the killings and the starvation and the displacement of the Palestinians by Israel.' Demonstrators are calling for justice for the journalists who have lost their lives and for accountability from media companies. They said they have not been impartial in reporting on the conflict. This past Sunday, five journalists were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza. Award-winning South African cartoonist, Jonathan Shapiro, was also in attendance and said he has been critical of the conflict in the Middle East for decades. 'I've been doing cartoons in support of Palestinians and condemning Israel for decades, actually, but of course in the last couple of years, since things have increased in their trusties and their ferocity and the genocide has become so apparent, I've done tougher and tougher cartoons, and I will keep doing them.' Freedom of Palestine demonstrators are also calling for intervention in war-torn Congo and Sudan.
Eyewitness News
5 days ago
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Palestine Solidarity Campaign: More must be done to protect journos in conflict zones
CAPE TOWN - The Palestine Solidarity Campaign coordinator said more must be done to protect journalists working in conflict zones. On Wednesday, activists and journalists held a vigil on steps of St George's Cathedral in Cape Town, demanding that more be done to address what it called the attack on journalists in Gaza. ALSO READ: Activists gather outside St George's Cathedral to honour journalists killed in Gaza According to the International Federation of Journalists, 270 journalists have died since the conflict in Gaza started in October 2023. Many journalists reporting from Gaza have utilised social media, with the aim of reaching more people and bring awareness to what is happening on the ground. During the vigil, activists and journalists expressed their frustrations with the lack of protection for journalists reporting from conflict zones. Last Sunday, five journalists were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza. Usuf Chikte, from the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, said more journalists have been killed in Gaza than any world war society has had. "We're saying that journalism is a protected, practiced craft. We need them in order, in terms of our Geneva Conventions and everything else, to be able to conduct their work without fear or favour." Chikte added that he believed journalists in Gaza were being deliberately targeted to stop them from exposing the truth.
Eyewitness News
05-08-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Palestine Solidarity Campaign to protest outside court against Cape Union Mart
CAPE TOWN - The Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) is set to protest outside the Western Cape High Court on Tuesday against retail store Cape Union Mart. The PSC claims Cape Union Mart is allegedly funding the Israeli army and is complicit in the Gaza conflict. Cape Union Mart has since filed for an interdict seeking to restrain the PSC from harassing its customers and staff. The company has denied the allegations, stating they have never donated funds to the Israeli army or government. PSC co-ordinator, Usuf Chikte, said the protests were a legitimate exercise of free speech and were not intended to harass or intimidate. "This legal attack is a blatant act of Zionist lawfare and an attempt to bully us and silence those who dare to protest genocide and apartheid."
