Media organizations urge Israel to open access to Gaza

More than 60 media and civil society organizations have signed an open letter urging Israel to give journalists independent access to Gaza.

The organizations—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 organizations 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 July 24.

CPJ CEO Jodie Ginsberg noted: “President Netanyahu describes Israel as a democracy. His actions with regard to the media tell a different story. 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 organized tours by the Israeli military.”

In addition to news outlets, the signatories—who span more than 26 countries—include professional groups and organizations dedicated to defending press freedom.

Read more: “Your credibility is on the line”: MFC urged to take action to protect journalists in Gaza

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We, the undersigned, request that Israeli authorities end immediately the restrictions on foreign media entering Gaza and grant independent access to international news organizations 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 organizations 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.

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Signatories:

ABC News, United States

Agence France-Presse, France

Alternative Press Syndicate, Lebanon

Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism

Asian American Journalists Association, United States

Associated Press, United States

Association for International Broadcasting, United Kingdom

Association of Foreign Press Correspondents, United States

Bangladeshi Journalists in International Media, Bangladesh

BBC News, United Kingdom

Bianet, Turkey

Bloomberg News, United States

CBS News, United States

CNN Worldwide, United States

CONNECTAS

Community Media Forum Europe, Belgium

CTV News, Canada

Daily Maverick, South Africa

Daraj, Lebanon

Denik Referendum, Czech Republic

European Broadcasting Union, Switzerland

European Federation of Journalists

Financial Times, United Kingdom

Forbidden Stories, France

fotosintesi.info, Italy

Free Press Unlimited, The Netherlands

Global Investigative Journalism Network

Global Reporting Centre, Canada

International Association of Women in Radio and Television

International Center for Journalists, United States

International Fund for Public Interest Media

International News Safety Institute, United Kingdom

International Women’s Media Foundation, United States

ITN, United Kingdom

Le Mauricien, Mauritius

McLatchy, United States

Media Development Center, Tunisia

Media Diversity Institute, United Kingdom

Middle East Eye

National Association of Hispanic Journalists, United States

National Press Club, United States

National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, The Philippines

NBC News, United States

Nieman Foundation for Journalism, Harvard University, United States

NPR, United States

Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project

Premium Times, Nigeria

Prospect Magazine, United Kingdom

Public Media Alliance

Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, United States

Rory Peck Trust, United Kingdom

RTÉ News & Current Affairs, Ireland

Rural Media Network, Pakistan

Sky News, United Kingdom

SMN24Media, Sri Lanka

Somali Media Women Association, Somalia

Sveriges Radio, Sweden

The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, United Kingdom

The Foreign Press Association, Israel and the Palestinian Territories

The Guardian, United Kingdom

The Irish Times, Ireland

The New York Times, United States

The Washington Post, United States

Twala, Algeria

Vocento, Spain

VRT News, Belgium

Wattan Media Network, Palestine

World Association for Christian Communication

World Association of News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), German

Yle News and Current Affairs, Finland