The Palestinian Association for Human Rights (Witness)
strongly condemns the ongoing systematic Israeli crimes against journalists and
media workers in the Gaza Strip. The latest atrocity was committed by Israeli
occupation forces at dawn on Thursday, December 26, 2024, resulting in the
killing of five journalists while performing their professional duties in front
of Al-Awda Hospital in Al-Nuseirat refugee camp.
This deliberate targeting raises the number of journalists
and media workers killed since the beginning of the Israeli aggression on Gaza
to over 190. This reflects the scale of brutal and systematic assaults aimed at
silencing the truth and preventing the world from seeing the reality on the
ground.
In an attempt to evade responsibility, the Israeli army’s
spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, claimed that the airstrike targeted members of
the Islamic Jihad Movement who were allegedly involved in military media
activities and disguised as journalists, citing unsubstantiated intelligence
information.
Witness categorically refutes these allegations and affirms
that the targeted journalists were carrying out their professional duties,
covering events and conveying facts to the world. These Israeli justifications
are part of a longstanding policy of misinformation to rationalize crimes
against journalists and civilians in Gaza.
Witness emphasizes that such attacks constitute flagrant
violations of all international norms and conventions, particularly Article 79
of Additional Protocol I to the 1949 Geneva Conventions, which mandates the
protection of journalists working in conflict zones. These actions also amount
to war crimes under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
The targeting of journalists in Gaza is part of a systematic
policy pursued by the occupation forces to suppress the truth and restrict
freedom of expression. This requires urgent international action to stop these
crimes and hold the perpetrators accountable before international justice.
Witness calls on the international community and the United
Nations, especially the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, to take
immediate measures to protect Palestinian journalists in Gaza. It also calls on
the International Criminal Court to launch an urgent investigation into these
crimes and urges international human rights organizations to document these
violations and work toward prosecuting those responsible.
The Palestinian Association for Human Rights (Witness)
Beirut, 27/12/2024