SAFA-  The Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor on Sunday called for urgent international action to end the media isolation imposed on the Gaza Strip, ensure the protection of journalists, and allow the immediate entry of independent international media into the territory.

In a statement, the organization also urged unrestricted access for protective gear and professional media equipment, noting that journalists in Gaza have been targeted for more than 1,000 days amid Israel’s ongoing genocide in the Strip.

The organization said Palestinian journalists continue to carry out their work under unprecedented risks, facing killings, injuries, arrests, and the denial of protective equipment and essential professional tools needed to report safely.

It stressed that such practices violate the obligation of parties to an armed conflict to respect and protect civilian journalists while undermining fundamental guarantees of press freedom and the public’s right to access information.

Since the start of the genocide, the Israeli occupation forces have prevented the entry into Gaza of protective and media equipment, including body armor, helmets, cameras, lenses, batteries, lighting equipment, tripods, broadcasting and communication devices, power sources, data storage devices, and other essential tools, the statement said.

The restrictions, it said, have severely limited journalists’ ability to work safely and independently while obstructing the documentation of serious violations of international law and the preservation of evidence.

Deadliest Conflict for Press Freedom in Modern History

Euro-Med Monitor noted that more than 262 journalists and media workers have been killed in Gaza since October 7, 2023, while hundreds of others have been injured or detained. It described the toll as the highest recorded against media professionals in any contemporary conflict, citing documentation by local and international press freedom and human rights organizations.

The organization added that Israel’s continued ban on the entry of foreign journalists and independent international media, alongside the targeting of Palestinian journalists, has weakened independent international scrutiny of alleged crimes committed in Gaza, limited the ability to verify events independently, and hindered efforts to document evidence of serious violations of international law.

It argued that the targeting of journalists, the exclusion of international media, and the denial of protective and professional equipment form part of a broader policy aimed at isolating Gaza from international media coverage, excluding independent witnesses, and restricting the documentation of violations and preservation of evidence.

Demands to the International Community

Euro-Med Monitor called on the international community to take immediate and effective measures to end the media isolation of Gaza by ensuring unrestricted access for independent international media outlets and foreign journalists, allowing direct and independent coverage of developments on the ground.

It also urged the immediate and unrestricted entry of protective gear, media equipment, and all technical and logistical supplies necessary for journalistic work, including body armor, helmets, cameras, lenses, batteries, lighting equipment, tripods, broadcasting and communication devices, power sources, and data storage equipment.

The organization further called on states and international organizations to use all available political, diplomatic, and legal tools to ensure Israel complies with its obligations under international law, including respecting and protecting journalists and media workers as civilians, ending attacks against them and against media institutions, facilities, and equipment, and guaranteeing their ability to work freely and safely.

It urged states to refrain from providing any support, assistance, or cooperation that could contribute to the continuation of these violations or reinforce impunity.

The statement also called for strengthened accountability efforts for all violations committed against journalists and media workers, including killings, injuries, arbitrary detention, attacks on media institutions, and obstruction of journalistic work, while supporting relevant international investigations, including those conducted by the International Criminal Court.

Finally, Euro-Med Monitor called for United Nations bodies, international fact-finding mechanisms, and organizations dedicated to press freedom to be granted access to Gaza to independently monitor the conditions of journalists, document violations, preserve evidence, and help combat impunity.