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Escalating Targeting of Palestinian Journalists in the West Bank

The "Reporters Without Borders" (RSF) organization warned of escalating attacks and restrictions imposed on journalists while covering events in the occupied West Bank, considering that these practices hinder the work of media outlets and limit the ability of journalists to convey information to the public.

In a report published by the organization on August 20, RSF documented a series of incidents that it stated occurred during the preceding three months, including the use of tear gas and stun grenades, preventing journalists from accessing areas witnessing military operations, detaining journalists, and interrogating them regarding their work, in addition to shooting incidents and assaults on journalists.

The organization stated that these incidents come within the context of what it describes as escalating pressures on Palestinian journalists since October 7, 2023. Al Jazeera reported that Israeli forces detained a number of journalists in the vicinity of the town of Al-Auja in the Jordan Valley, eastern West Bank. According to RSF's documentation, the most prominent incidents occurred as follows:

May 11: A group of journalists was exposed to tear gas and stun grenades while covering the raid on the Qalandia camp, and the organization stated that the crew of "Al Araby" channel was among those targeted.

May 16: Journalists were prevented from entering the Jenin camp in the northern West Bank, at a time when Israeli forces were carrying out military operations and demolition work in the area.

May 27: Israeli police detained independent journalist Saif Al-Qawasmi, 25 years old, while he was heading to the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque to prepare a press report. According to RSF, Al-Qawasmi was subjected to interrogation regarding his journalistic work for several hours before being barred from entering the site, first for a week, then for six months.

June 7: Journalists told RSF that Israeli forces fired stun grenades towards them, and then opened fire while covering a wide military operation in the Balata camp, east of Nablus. Among the journalists were photographer Majdi Mohammed Shtayeh from the Associated Press and independent journalist Sedqi Ayoub Ryan.

June 16: Israeli forces expelled about ten journalists from the area east of Nablus using stun grenades, according to the organization, and among them were crews from the "Al Jazeera" and "Roya" channels. On the same day, Al-Quds news network correspondent Moataz Saqef Al-Hait was injured by a gas canister while covering events in the village of Deir Abu Mash'al, west of Ramallah.

19 Palestinian Journalists in Detention RSF indicates that 19 Palestinian journalists from the West Bank are detained by the Israeli authorities, and that 15 of them were arrested after October 7, 2023. The organization added that Israeli forces arrested, on August 12, independent journalist Mohammad Awad from his home in the town of Bituniya, west of Ramallah, and stated that the authorities charged him with "terrorism." The organization reported that the Israeli army did not provide, until the date of the report's publication, information supporting this charge in response to its inquiries. RSF believes that arrests, restrictions on movement and access to event areas, alongside assaults during coverage, constitute an increasing pattern of restriction on journalistic work in the West Bank.

Restrictions Affecting Foreign Journalists The restrictions, according to the organization, are not limited to Palestinian journalists, as it pointed to the deportation of French journalist Alice Froment, a collaborator with Radio France Internationale (RFI), upon her arrival at Ben Gurion Airport on June 10, in addition to decisions banning the entry of other foreign journalists. RSF stated that these restrictions and attacks aim to obstruct the work of journalists and prevent the transmission of information from areas witnessing military operations or field tensions. The organization called on governments allied with Israel to pressure the Israeli authorities to stop what it describes as attacks on journalists. The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate documented 108 violations committed by the Israeli occupation against journalists and workers in media institutions during the past month, in a toll that reflects the continuous tightening on press freedom in the occupied territories. The Syndicate said in its monthly report that cases of detention and prevention of coverage topped the list of violations with 58 cases, alongside 11 settler attacks, 12 instances of targeting with sound and gas bombs, 6 beatings, and 4 bloody injuries. It added that the violations also included the arrest of two journalists, the interrogation of four others, the storming of homes and journalistic institutions, in addition to seizing and smashing equipment, deleting filmed material, and banishing journalists from Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Syndicate pointed out that these attacks reflect the continuous tightening against Palestinian journalists and preventing them from performing their work, conveying events, and documenting them, at a time when there is an increasing need for professional coverage of field conditions. The Journalists Syndicate pointed out that targeting journalists comes within the context of a systematic policy aimed at silencing the Palestinian voice and obscuring the truth, warning of the repercussions of these violations on freedom of opinion and expression in the occupied territories.

Source: Reporters Without Borders (RSF), the organization's original report