Seventy-two of the 99 journalists killed worldwide in 2023 were Palestinians covering Israel’s war on Gaza, making the 12 months the deadliest for media in nearly a decade, according to the Committee to Protect journalists (CPJ).
Journalist killings globally would have declined year over year if not for deaths caused by the ongoing war on Gaza, CPJ said in its annual report released Thursday.
“In December 2023, CPJ reported that more journalists were killed in the first three months of the war between Israel and Gaza than have ever been killed in a single country in an entire year,” declared the organization.
In total, it documented 77 journalists killed in the war on Gaza last year while doing their work: 72 Palestinians, three Lebanese and two Israelis.
Palestinian victims account for nearly 75 percent of all journalists killed worldwide.
“This war is unprecedented in terms of the threat against journalists,” CPJ President Jodie Ginsberg told Tel Aviv Tribune from New York.
“The important thing to remember about this war is that Gazan journalists are the only ones capable of reporting on what is happening inside Gaza. International journalists have not been able to enter, have not been allowed to enter, except on trips that are very, very controlled and supervised by the Israeli military.
“So we are completely dependent on these (Palestinian) journalists who are risking their lives to report this story to us,” she added.
On February 7, the New York-based organization said the number of journalists killed in the war on Gaza rose to 85.
CPJ has previously addressed what it calls the “persecution” of journalists by Israeli forces and is investigating whether a dozen journalists killed in the Gaza conflict were deliberately targeted by Israeli soldiers, which would constitute a war crime.
“Journalists threatened everywhere”
Ginsberg said she was “disappointed…at the lack of public solidarity we have seen” toward Palestinian journalists during the ongoing war.
She said Western “hesitation” to show solidarity with those targeted and killed in Gaza was “unfortunately not surprising” given that Israel is “the country, the issue that has divided the international media, international politicians more than anything.”
But she stressed: “I think it’s really important that we let our colleagues in Gaza and the region know that we stand with them, that we are here to support them, so that we can ensure that freedom of the press and journalists are respected. protected not only at this crucial time in Gaza, but also around the world, at a time when journalists are under threat everywhere.
Worldwide, the CPJ report said the toll of 99 journalists killed was the highest since 2015 and represents an increase of nearly 44 percent over 2022 figures.
It says the largest reductions in journalist deaths in 2023 were recorded in Ukraine and Mexico. Both went from 13 murders to two.
The number of deaths remained stable in Somalia and the Philippines, the organization said. However, he warns that Mexico – along with the Philippines and Somalia – is “one of the deadliest countries in the world for the press”.
“To make the situation worse, government agencies spy on journalists and rights defenders, and a significant number of journalists have had to leave their homes and abandon their profession due to the violence,” the CPJ report warns.
In the Palestinian territories, even when journalists are not at work, they run the risk of being bombed or arrested by Israel. The Gaza government’s media office said at least 126 Palestinian media workers had been killed since the war against Israel began on October 7.
Journalists working in conflict zones are protected by international humanitarian law. Palestinian journalists accuse Israel of repeatedly violating this law by targeting the media.
“It is very important that these killings are thoroughly investigated and those responsible are held accountable,” Ginsberg told Tel Aviv Tribune.
She said her organization was working to document attacks on journalists in Gaza, which could then be used as evidence and presented to bodies such as the International Court of Justice or the International Criminal Court.
