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More than 70 media and civil society organisations have signed an open letter urging Israel to give journalists independent access to Gaza.
The organisations—which include the Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, BBC, CNN, The Guardian, The New York Times, and The Washington Post — point out that no independent media access to Gaza has been permitted since the start of the war, increasing the pressure on domestic journalists, and creating a space for mis- and disinformation to flourish.
“More than 100 journalists have been killed since the start of the war and those who remain are working in conditions of extreme deprivation. The result is that information from Gaza is becoming harder and harder to obtain and that the reporting which does get through is subject to repeated questions over its veracity,” the organisations say in the letter, which was coordinated by the Committee to Protect Journalists.
The letter comes ahead of a planned visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the United States, where he is set to meet with U.S. President Joe Biden and address the U.S. Congress on 24 July.
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International, Israeli, and Palestinian journalists from outside Gaza should be given independent access to Gaza so they can judge for themselves what is happening in this war—rather than being spoon-fed with a handful of organised tours by the Israeli military.”
In addition to news outlets, the signatories—who span more than 27 countries—include professional groups and organisations dedicated to defending press freedom.
About the Committee to Protect Journalists
The Committee to Protect Journalists is an independent, nonprofit organisation that promotes press freedom worldwide. We defend the right of journalists to report the news safely and without fear of reprisal.
Read the full letter below:
We, the undersigned, request that Israeli authorities end immediately the restrictions on foreign media entering Gaza and grant independent access to international news organisations seeking to access the territory.
Nine months into the war, international reporters are still being denied access to Gaza except for rare and escorted trips arranged by the Israeli military. This effective ban on foreign reporting has placed an impossible and unreasonable burden on local reporters to document a war through which they are living. More than 100 journalists have been killed since the start of the war and those who remain are working in conditions of extreme deprivation. The result is that information from Gaza is becoming harder and harder to obtain and that the reporting which does get through is subject to repeated questions over its veracity.
We fully understand the inherent risks in reporting from war zones. These are risks that many of our organisations have taken over decades in order to investigate, document developments as they occur, and understand the impacts of wars the world over.
A free and independent press is the cornerstone of democracy. We ask that Israel uphold its commitments to press freedom by providing foreign media with immediate, independent access to Gaza, and that Israel abides by its international obligations to protect journalists as civilians.
Signatories
1. ABC News, United States
2. Agence France-Presse, France
3. Al-Araby Al-Jadeed
4. Alternative Press Syndicate, Lebanon
5. Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism
6. Asian American Journalists Association, United States
7. Associated Press, United States
8. Association for International Broadcasting, United Kingdom
9. Association of Foreign Press Correspondents, United States
10. Bangladeshi Journalists in International Media, Bangladesh
11. BBC News, United Kingdom
12. Bianet, Turkey
13. Bloomberg News, United States
14. CBS News, United States
15. CNN Worldwide, United States
16. CONNECTAS
17. Community Media Forum Europe, Belgium
18. CTV News, Canada
19. Daily Maverick, South Africa
20. Daraj, Lebanon
21. Denik Referendum, Czech Republic
22. European Broadcasting Union, Switzerland
23. European Federation of Journalists
24. Financial Times, United Kingdom
25. Forbidden Stories, France
26. fotosintesi.info, Italy
27. Free Press Unlimited, The Netherlands
28. Global Investigative Journalism Network
29. Global Reporting Centre, Canada
30. International Association of Women in Radio and Television
31. International Center for Journalists, United States
32. International Fund for Public Interest Media
33. International Media Support, Denmark
34. International News Safety Institute, United Kingdom
35. International Women’s Media Foundation, United States
36. ITN, United Kingdom
37. Le Mauricien, Mauritius
38. McLatchy, United States
39. Media Development Center, Tunisia
40. Media Diversity Institute, United Kingdom
41. Middle East Eye
42. National Association of Hispanic Journalists, United States
43. National Press Club, United States
44. National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, The Philippines
45. NBC News, United States
46. Nieman Foundation for Journalism, Harvard University, United States
47. NPR, United States
48. Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project
49. Premium Times, Nigeria
50. Prospect Magazine, United Kingdom
51. Public Media Alliance
52. Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, United States
53. Rory Peck Trust, United Kingdom
54. RTÉ News & Current Affairs, Ireland
55. Rural Media Network, Pakistan
56. Sky News, United Kingdom
57. SMN24Media, Sri Lanka
58. Somali Media Women Association, Somalia
59. Sveriges Radio, Sweden
60. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, United Kingdom
61. The Foreign Press Association, Israel and the Palestinian
Territories
62. The Guardian, United Kingdom
63. The Irish Times, Ireland
64. The New Arab
65. The New York Times, United States
66. The Washington Post, United States
67. Twala, Algeria
68. Vocento, Spain
69. VRT News, Belgium
70. Wattan Media Network, Palestine
71. World Association for Christian Communication
72. World Association of News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), Germany
73. Yle News and Current Affairs, Finland
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