Over a hundred media outlets and organizations demand access for foreign journalists into Gaza

BEIRUT— More than 130 media outlets and journalist advocacy organizations requested Thursday that Israel allow “immediate” and “unrestricted” access for the international press to the Gaza Strip, which foreign correspondents have been largely unable to access since Oct. 7, 2023.

“For 20 months, Israeli authorities have denied journalists from outside Gaza independent access to the Palestinian territory, a situation unprecedented in the contemporary history of armed conflicts,” stated the signatories of this letter coordinated by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

“Local journalists, who are best suited to report on the ground, are facing exile and famine. As of today, nearly 200 journalists have been killed by the Israeli army. Many others have been injured and face constant threats to their lives for doing their job: bearing witness,” the letter continues, signed among others by the AFP's head of information, Phil Chetwynd, the American Associated Press agency director Julie Pace, and the editor of the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, Aluf Benn.

Following the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attacks by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, Israel launched a military offensive on the Gaza Strip, which has resulted in tens of thousands of casualties and massive destruction in this Palestinian territory.

After more than two and a half months of blockade, Israel has allowed since May 19 the entry of a limited number of U.N. trucks to Gaza. The U.N. describes this as a “drop in the ocean” in addressing the needs of the approximately 2.4 million residents who are threatened with starvation.

Israel has also closed the gates of Gaza to foreign correspondents, allowing some to follow its soldiers for brief periods. Major foreign media rely on teams of Palestinian journalists in Gaza, exhausted by 20 months of bombing, while others have managed to leave the territory and monitor the situation remotely through contacts on site.

Many young Gazans, like Motaz Azaiza or Bisan Owda, have taken to social media, especially Instagram where they have thousands of followers, to recount the life of Palestinians under Israeli strikes.

“At this critical juncture, with the resumption of military operations and efforts to restore humanitarian aid delivery to Gaza, it is essential that Israel opens Gaza's borders [...],” the letter continues, urging “world leaders” to put pressure on the matter.

“When journalists are killed in unprecedented numbers and independent international media are prevented from accessing [Gaza], the world loses its ability to see clearly, to fully understand, and to react effectively to what is happening,” added CPJ President Jodie Ginsberg.

International media have repeatedly and unsuccessfully requested free access for foreign correspondents to the Gaza Strip. Based in Jerusalem, the Foreign Press Association (FPA), which represents reporters working for international media in Israel and the Palestinian Territories, has already filed an appeal with the Israeli Supreme Court to challenge this entry ban into Gaza.