More than three out of every four journalists and/or media workers killed worldwide in the last two years were Palestinians in Gaza, according to the latest updated data from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Only in the Middle East, Israel is directly responsible for 95% of murders of journalists and/or media workers since October 7, 2023.
Despite the magnitude of the data, they could be even worse. CPJ is still investigating “more than 130 additional cases of possible murders, arrests and injuries of journalists, and damage to media offices and homes, cases that remain difficult to document and verify.” They have managed to establish, however, that in addition to the 237 journalists murdered in Gaza, 152 were injured; 92, detained; and two journalists have been reported missing. These figures make the genocide in Gaza the deadliest period for journalists since CPJ began collecting data in 1992.
The murders of journalists did not stop either after the agreement reached between Israel and Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza. On October 12, Palestinian journalist Saleh Aljafarawi “was shot dead by members of an armed militia linked to Israel while covering clashes in the Sabra neighborhood.” Months earlier, Aljafarawi had declared to the Qatari channel that he lived “in fear every second, especially after hearing what the Israeli occupation said” about his work.
Aljafarawi had left a farewell letter to share in the event of his death. “I have felt the loss many times, but I never hesitated to convey the truth as it is: a truth that will serve as a testimony against those who remained silent and as an honor for those who stood firm.“he wrote in the letter collected by CPJ itself.
This latest murder exemplifies, as stated by CPJ regional director Sara Qudah, “the dangers that persist for journalists in Gaza, even after a ceasefire agreement is reached”. For this reason, the Committee insists on urging the international community to hold Israel “accountable for its illegal attacks against journalists, guarantee that international media have immediate and independent access to Gaza, and open humanitarian corridors” for them.
The murder of journalists, as Reporters Without Borders has repeatedly denounced, falls within the definition of “indiscriminate attack” offered by international law. They are war crimes.
