War on Gaza has been the deadliest period for journalists: Press group

AP , Friday 27 Oct 2023

The Committee to Protect Journalists says the past three weeks since the beginning of the war on Gaza on 7 October have been the deadliest on record for journalists covering conflict since the organization started tracking in 1992.

Al Jazeera correspondent Wael Dahdouh mourns his son killed in an Israeli airstrike at Nuisserat ref
Al Jazeera correspondent Wael Dahdouh mourns his son killed in an Israeli airstrike at Nuisserat refugee camp, outside a hospital in Deir al Balah, south of the Gaza Strip, Thursday, Oct. 26, 2023. AP

 

The organization said in a statement Friday that at least 29 journalists have died covering the war, including 24 Palestinians, four Israelis and 1 Lebanese. Additionally, 8 other journalists were reported injured and 9 were reported missing or detained.

CPJ also criticized the cutting of communications services in the Gaza Strip, warning that the blackout is also a “news blackout” that has compromised the public’s ability to “know and understand what is happening in this conflict.”

“This can lead to serious consequences with an independent, factual information vacuum that can be filled with deadly propaganda, dis- and misinformation,” it said.

The organization stressed that journalists are civilians that must be respected and protected in accordance with international humanitarian law, adding that “deliberating targeting journalists or media infrastructure constitutes possible war crimes.”

Short link: