Jerusalem, May 3 (EFE) .- The Foreign press Association in Israel and the Palestinian territories (FPA) denounced this Saturday, on the occasion of World Press freedom Day, which Israel continues to veto the entry of international journalists to the Gaza Strip 18 months after the start of the war offensive, which described as “shame” and an impediment to show the real devastation.
“Never in the history of Israel the government has imposed so wide restrictions on the media for such a prolonged period. This is a shame for a country that claims to be a lighthouse of democracy,” said the FPA in a statement broadcast on networks.
The organization explained that the Israeli authorities have denied their requests to access the besieged and devastated enclave, hiding in security and logistics. In addition, the FPA today mentioned the Palestinian journalists “who continue to inform the story with great personal risk.”
“Our repeated requests for dialogue and access have been disagree, and the government has tried to repeatedly delay our case before the Supreme Court. We urge Israel to stop the endless delays, defend the fundamental principles of press freedom and allow the entry without restrictions of journalists to Gaza,” claims the text.
On May 21 there is a hearing in the Israeli Supreme Court, in Jerusalem, to treat independent access of foreign journalists to Gaza. Already in January 2024, the Supreme Court rejected a request from the FPA, despite recognizing that it is a violation of press freedom, for security reasons.
Since October 7, 2023, the UN has independently verified the murder of 211 journalists or media workers in Gaza, including 28 women. According to UNESCO, at least 47 died while exercising their work while dated April 29, 49 Palestinian journalists remained detained in Israeli prisons, according to the Palestinian Commission of detainees and former exempted.
On April 16, Israel killed the photojournalist Fátima Hassauna with about 9 family members in a bombing against his home in the Al Tuffah neighborhood, east of Gaza City, as confirmed by local sources. Other journalists killed in Gaza from the beginning of the war include the jazeera journalists – Cadena vetoed in the country by the Israeli- hossam Shabbat and Hamza Dahdouh, son of the head of Al Jazeera in Gaza, Wael Dahdouh.
Last February, the Committee for the Protection of Journalists (CPJ), based in New York, already denounced that the Israel Army was responsible for more than 70 % of the murders of journalists in 2024, and said that the deadliest countries “share a common manual that helps them avoid responsibility and deny justice to the journalists murdered.” EFE
Related news :