At least 21 journalists dead so far, most in Israeli attacks: CPJ report

At least 21 journalists have been killed so far in the Israel-Palestine violence, most of them in Israel’s attacks on Gaza, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. These include 17 Palestinians, three Israelis, and one Lebanese journalist, according to the CPJ report.

The three Israeli journalists among these 21 were killed in attacks by Hamas.

The CPJ report was uncertain about whether all these journalists were on duty moments before they died.

Meanwhile, for journalists outside the region, it’s gradually becoming even more challenging to cover the recent flare-up with fairness and accuracy amid repeated allegations of bias. 

Upday, the largest news aggregator app in Europe and a subsidiary of German publishing giant Axel Springer, has allegedly given directives to prioritise the Israeli perspective and minimise Palestinian civilian deaths in coverage, according to interviews with employees and internal documents obtained by The Intercept. 

Meanwhile, MSNBC has denied a Semafor report that it has sidelined three Muslim anchors,  including Mehdi Hasan, Ayman Mohyeldin and Ali Velshi, amid American outrage over the Hamas attack. The network’s ratings have dipped as pro-Israeli commentators accused it of bias. The Semafor report pointed to internal rifts at the network over the conflict and its coverage. MSNBC parent NBC Universal told Semafor it did not sideline the hosts, saying the changes in the lineup were “coincidental.” 

MSNBC is not the only network that’s facing such allegations. Read more about it here.

‘More journalists dead in 2 weeks than since 2001’

Sherif Mansour, the CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa programme coordinator, told AP that more journalists have been killed in Gaza during the past two weeks than since 2001.

Eight journalists were reported injured while three were missing or detained, according to the US-based non-profit. CPJ said it was also probing “unconfirmed reports of other journalists being killed, missing, detained, hurt or threatened, and of damage to media offices and journalists’ homes”.

Among the dead are Khalil Abu Aathra, Sameeh Al-Nady, Mohammad Balousha, Issam Bhar, Abdulhadi Habib, Yousef Maher Dawas, Salam Mema, Husam Mubarak, Issam Abdallah, Ahmed Shehab, Mohamed Fayez Abu Matar, Saeed al-Taweel, Mohammed Sobh, Hisham Alnwajha, Assaad Shamlakh, Shai Regev, Ayelet Arnin, Yaniv Zohar, Mohammad Al-Salhi, Mohammad Jarghoun, and Ibrahim Mohammad Lafi.

“CPJ emphasises that journalists are civilians doing important work during times of crisis and must not be targeted by warring parties,” Mansour said. “Journalists across the region are making great sacrifices to cover this heartbreaking conflict. All parties must take steps to ensure their safety.”

These deaths add to the 20 journalists estimated to be dead at the hands of Israeli forces between 2000 and 2022, according to a CPJ report in May. “No one has ever been charged or held responsible for these deaths.”