Israel must open access to Gaza, say global news organisations

11 July 2024

The Association for International Broadcasting has joined more than 60 media and civil society organisations who 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, 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 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 organised tours by the Israeli military.”

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

Read the full letter:

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. Alternative Press Syndicate, Lebanon
  4. Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism
  5. Asian American Journalists Association, United States
  6. Associated Press, United States
  7. Association for International Broadcasting, United Kingdom
  8. Association of Foreign Press Correspondents, United States
  9. Bangladeshi Journalists in International Media, Bangladesh
  10. BBC News, United Kingdom
  11. Bianet, Turkey
  12. Bloomberg News, United States
  13. CBS News, United States
  14. CNN Worldwide, United States
  15. Community Media Forum Europe, Belgium
  16. CTV News, Canada
  17. Daily Maverick, South Africa
  18. Daraj, Lebanon
  19. Denik Referendum, Czech Republic
  20. European Broadcasting Union, Switzerland
  21. European Federation of Journalists
  22. Financial Times, United Kingdom
  23. Forbidden Stories, France
  24. fotosintesi.info, Italy
  25. Free Press Unlimited, The Netherlands
  26. Global Investigative Journalism Network
  27. Global Reporting Centre, Canada
  28. International Association of Women in Radio and Television
  29. International Center for Journalists, United States
  30. International Fund for Public Interest Media
  31. International News Safety Institute, United Kingdom
  32. ITN, United Kingdom
  33. Le Mauricien, Mauritius
  34. McLatchy, United States
  35. Media Development Center, Tunisia
  36. Media Diversity Institute, United Kingdom
  37. National Association of Hispanic Journalists, United States
  38. National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, The Philippines
  39. NBC News, United States
  40. Nieman Foundation for Journalism, Harvard University, United States
  41. NPR, United States
  42. Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project
  43. Premium Times, Nigeria
  44. Prospect Magazine, United Kingdom
  45. Public Media Alliance
  46. Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, United States
  47. Rory Peck Trust, United Kingdom
  48. RTÉ News & Current Affairs, Ireland
  49. Rural Media Network, Pakistan
  50. Sky News, United Kingdom
  51. SMN24Media, Sri Lanka
  52. Somali Media Women Association, Somalia
  53. Sveriges Radio, Sweden
  54. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, United Kingdom
  55. The Guardian, United Kingdom
  56. The Irish Times, Ireland
  57. The New York Times, United States
  58. The Washington Post, United States
  59. Twala, Algeria
  60. Vocento, Spain
  61. VRT News, Belgium
  62. Wattan Media Network, Palestine
  63. World Association for Christian Communication
  64. World Association of News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), Germany
  65. Yle News and Current Affairs, Finland

 

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