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Today, the Israeli “Defense” Forces publicly threatened the lives of six journalists who have been reporting on the U.S.-backed Israeli war on Gaza for over a year: Anas Al-Sharif, Alaa Abdul Aziz Muhammad Salama, Hossam Shabat, Ashraf Sami Ashour Saraj, Ismail Farid Muhammad Abu Omar, and Talal Mahmoud Abdul Rahman Aruki. Israel accused these reporters of being “Islamic Jihad terrorists”— only the latest instance of the occupation making false claims in order to justify the assassinations of Palestinian journalists. After murdering Al Jazeera correspondent Ismail Al-Ghoul this past in July, the occupation army claimed that the martyred journalist, born in 1997, had received a Hamas military ranking in 2007 — when he was 10 years old. Israel’s lies are shameless and absurd. They are also fatal. As journalist Hossam Shabat shared on Twitter Live earlier today, “What the occupation is doing … is conducting a complete blackout of the situation… so that they can operate with even more impunity than they have before… The journalistic profession of me and my colleagues is the medicine to the atrocities that the occupation is committing.” Since 10/7, the occupation has escalated its assault on Palestinian journalists — a practice that predates the current aggression. This targeting has been particularly acute in the north of the Strip, where the Israeli military has subjected the population to ceaseless bombing, engineered famine, and now, tightening siege. Martyrs lie in the streets; there is no medication to treat the injured. The brave journalists of the North have meticulously documented these conditions for a year. “If you continue spreading lies about Israel, we’ll come for you next,” read a WhatsApp message sent by the IOF to journalist Hassan Hamad shortly before he was martyred. he world has seen the crimes these journalists have documented; their footage has changed the world’s view of Israel. It is past time for media workers in the West to defend the lives and livelihoods of their colleagues in Gaza. The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate reports that since October 7, 2023, the occupation has murdered 168 journalists and injured 360 more. Fadi Al-Wahidi, an Al Jazeera cameraman, was shot in the neck by Israeli forces while reporting earlier this month; he is now paraplegic and in a coma. Israel has refused to allow his medical evacuation from Gaza. With this morning’s threat, Israel has once again declared its contempt for the free press and its intent to commit war crimes in the dark, daring the world to intervene. We are not powerless against these vicious attacks on journalists. As writers, reporters, editors, publishers — we have agency and, with it, a responsibility to protect our colleagues. Silence in this moment is unconscionable. Failure to act would make us complicit in the largest assassination campaign against journalists in history. Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up to get it in your inbox.
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