Palestine: PJS reports 479 media rights violations in first half of 2022

The Israeli army and security forces were responsible for at least 479 violations of media and journalists’ rights in Palestine during the first half of 2022, including the assassination of Al Jazeera correspondent Shireen Abu Aqleh. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate, the Palestine Journalists Syndicate (PJS) in condemning these attacks and urges the Israeli authorities to take steps to end the climate of impunity with which they are carried out.

Journalists react to a sound grenade as they cover clashes between Palestinian protesters and Israeli security forces in Hebron on March 1, 2022. Credit: Hazem Bader / AFP

The PJS reported that the frequency of violations increased throughout the first six months of the year, with 192 recorded in the first quarter which rose to 287 in the second quarter. It highlighted the impact that the assassination of Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh had on Palestinian journalists, who see Israel’s disregard of international law and treaties as a threat. 

Among the violations documented by the PJS, the most common were the detention of journalists and prevention of coverage, which amounted to 175 cases. Followed by 80 cases of physical assault by the Israeli army and security forces, and 65 cases of attacks perpetrated by Israeli settlers. The report noted that the increase of the attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinian journalists under the protection of the army was a remarkable and growing trend. 

Geographically, 131 violations were recorded in Jerusalem, which accounted for 30% of the total violations, followed by the governorates of Hebron and Nablus.  

In their statement, the PJS said: “Journalistic work in Palestine is under attack. We renew our call on relevant international and human rights organisations to take decisive actions to stop the targeting of journalists by the occupation forces”. 

The IFJ has repeatedly condemned the deliberate targeting of journalists and media facilities by Israel and submitted a formal complaint to the ICC in early April 2022.

IFJ Secretary General Anthony Bellanger said: “We welcome the extraordinary job that PJS has carried out, documenting each and every violation of media freedom in Palestine. It is crucial that the perpetrators of these attacks are held to account, and international institutions must play their role to ensure it. We will continue to support our colleagues in Palestine until justice is done”.

For more information, please contact IFJ on +32 2 235 22 16

The IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 146 countries

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