This year, 103 journalists and media workers were killed, according to the International Federation of Journalists. As of the beginning of the year, 99 journalists and media workers were killed in the course of their work, the majority occurring in war zones: 50 in Palestine; 8 in Ukraine and 6 in Sudan. The targeted attacks are deliberate attempts at silencing and punishing media personnel.
The deaths have sparked international condemnation from human rights organizations, and statements were issued about humanitarian law and the grounds on which journalists and media workers report.
Reporters Without Borders, an international non-profit organization, informs about the press freedom situation. RSF found more than half of the world’s population lives in a country where press freedom is in a “very serious” situation. The organization found 4.25 billion people in 42 countries live in dangerous places for press freedom.
This has become an increasing concern journalists and media personnel have about the course of international humanitarian law. This law offers protection to all journalists as civilians.
Media outlets are often barred from covering war zones due to violence and government restrictions on access; however, there’s a concern this is limiting the public’s right to know about the realities of war.
Such restrictions include political authorities deliberately banning access to conflict zones to monopolize information for the public, which can control public opinions. War correspondents have even seen their accreditation, press passes and visas to enter a country refused by local authorities.
“Reliable information about wars and conflicts is essential for the well-being of local populations and is necessary to enlighten the world on the forces behind wars and the toll on civilians,” Nick Turse, a fellow for the Type Media Center said.
Coverage by journalists and media workers is important to showing the human costs of conflict and corruption.
On Aug. 10, a targeted Israeli airstrike killed six Palestinian media workers in their tent near Gaza City’s al-Shifa hospital. Anas al-Sharif, a 28-year-old journalist, was among the six.
“My brother fulfilled his mission and his duty, despite the constant threats he faced from the Israeli army,” Mahmoud al-Sharif, Anas al-Sharif’s brother, said to The Guardian.
Mohammed al-Khaldi, a 36-year-old journalist, was also among the six who were killed. A family member told The Guardian that from the beginning of his journalistic career, and during previous wars, al-Khaldi absolutely refused to film body parts or people screaming. He said his heart could not bear such pain.
The urgency to humanize wars in conflict zones has become a necessary part of on-the-ground reporting. When journalists and media workers are deliberately targeted, it’s considered a war crime, according to IHL.
The necessary steps to hold those in power accountable began with unions and organizations writing to the government to urge for action. An open letter written by the National Union of Journalists, the IFJ and the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate, alongside 488 journalists from 244 publications from across the globe, addressed Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper directly.
The letter condemns the targeted killing of journalists in Gaza and calls for the UK government to “exert pressure for international journalists to be allowed in and out of Gaza, and urges UK government action to uphold press freedom and human rights.”
As a result of the persecution of journalists and media workers, newsrooms everywhere are shrinking because of what is known as a chilling effect. It’s causing journalists and news organizations to self-censor their coverage because of the killings of journalists and the intense political pressure to document the conflict.
Journalists and media workers who have put themselves in the middle of war zones to capture humanity at its lowest are not there to mock the government; they are there to inform the public. The presence of these watchdogs is to convey to the public in words, images and videos how dangerous the conflict is.
The Post editorials are independent of the publication's news coverage. The Post can be reached via editor@thepostathens.com.
