Israel has repeatedly made unproven claims about journalists 'joining militant groups': CPJ

Mohamed Hatem , Thursday 24 Oct 2024

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said Israel has frequently made unproven claims against journalists in Gaza accusing them of militant activity, following an Israeli army post on X alleging that six Palestinian Al Jazeera journalists covering the war in Gaza were "Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists."

Journalists
Photo of Israel post showing Gaza journalists as circulated on X.

 

The organization noted that it was aware of the Israeli army accusations and that Israel has made similar statements in the past before targeting and killing journalists.

In its post, Israel cited what it described as "intelligence information" and several documents allegedly found in Gaza, which it claimed confirmed the six journalists' military affiliation with Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

The United Nations special rapporteur in the Palestinian territories Francesca Albanese sounded the alarm on the latest accusations toward Journalists in Gaza describing the Israeli annoucement as a "death sentence."

 

 

Israel also alleged that the documents found in Gaza, which it has not made public, provided "proof of Hamas operatives" embedded within Qatar's Al Jazeera network.

The CPJ, which advocates for the rights and safety of journalists worldwide, warned in a post on X that "Israel has repeatedly made similar unproven claims without producing credible evidence."

 

 

Addressing the Israeli allegations, Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said on Thursday that the country was proud of Al Jazeera’s news network, which he claimed operates to the “highest international standards.” 

He added, in a joint press conference with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Doha: "We have never seen journalists being treated the way they have been treated in Gaza, unfortunately."

"What we have learnt is that we cannot take those accusations of Israel at face value,” he added.

In a statement on Wednesday, Al Jazeera vehemently condemned the "unfounded allegations" against its journalists and denounced Israel's use of "fabricated evidence." 

The network stated that its correspondents have been reporting from northern Gaza and documenting the dire humanitarian situation "as the sole international media" outlet there, stressing that it "categorically rejects" the portrayal of Al Jazeera journalists as terrorists. 

It added that Israel’s allegations are part of a pattern targeting Al Jazeera and may serve as a pretext for further attacks, noting that the "baseless" accusations followed a recent report by its investigative unit that revealed potential war crimes committed by Israeli forces during the ongoing assault on Gaza.

Earlier in the summer, Tel Aviv revoked Al Jazeera's license to report from Israel.

Based on an extraordinary order issued in May, Israeli police raided Al Jazeera's broadcast position in occupied East Jerusalem, seizing equipment there, preventing its broadcasts in Israel and blocking its websites.

The network later aired Israeli troops tearing down a banner on a balcony used by the Al Jazeera office, which bore an image of Shireen Abu Akleh, its Palestinian-American journalist shot dead by Israeli forces in May 2022.

In September, Israel shut down the offices of Al Jazeera in the occupied West Bank.

Record of targeting Journalists
 

Since October 2023, Israeli soldiers have killed tens of journalists covering its genocidal campaign in the Gaza Strip, including three Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza.

Israel has also refused to allow the evacuation of two other journalists in critical condition.

 

 

 

Israel's war on Gaza war has taken a severe toll on journalists in Gaza and Lebanon across all sorts of news and media outlets.

According to preliminary investigations by the CPJ, around 128 journalists and media workers have been killed in Gaza, the occupied West Bank, Israel, and Lebanon since the war on Gaza began last October, making it the deadliest period for journalists since the organization began gathering data in 1992.

In July, Al Jazeera correspondent Ismail Al-Ghoul and his cameraman Rami Al-Rifi were killed in an Israeli strike as they filmed an obituary report mourning Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh near his home in the Shati refugee camp near Gaza City.

The Israeli airstrike, which hit Ismail and Rami's vehicle, decapitated Al-Ghoul, Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

In December of 2023, Al Jazeera's bureau chief in the Palestinian territory, Wael Al-Dahdouh, was also wounded in an Israeli strike that killed the network's cameraman.

Two months earlier, Israel killed Dahdouh's wife, two of their children and a grandson in its bombardment of central Gaza's Nuseirat refugee camp.

Dahdouh was informed on air of their killing in an Israeli strike that targeted a shelter that they had recently fled to after their own neighbourhood was bombarded.

In January 2024, Dahdouh's eldest son, Hamza Al-Dahdouh, a member of Al Jazeera staff, was killed when an Israeli strike targeted a car in Rafah.

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