Palestinian broadcast journalist Mohammed Abu Namous and his cameraman covering the war in Gaza. © UN News
Image source: https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/05/1162861
Killing the Messengers: Israel’s War on Journalists in Gaza
A Report on the Protection of Journalists under International Humanitarian Law
By Astrid Bochnakian / GICJ
The war in Gaza has become the deadliest armed conflict for journalists in modern history. As of August 2025, at least 192 journalists and media workers have been killed, surpassing the total number of losses in other major ongoing conflicts such as Ukraine and Sudan. Among them were six Al-Jazeera staffers killed in an Israeli strike on 11 August 2025, including the well-known correspondent Anas al-Sharif. On 25 August 2025, five other members of the press were killed in Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis. Their deaths exemplify a broader pattern of targeting Palestinian reporters and silencing independent voices.
Israel has combined military strikes against journalists and media infrastructure with restrictive laws, censorship, and smear campaigns. Amendments to its Counter-Terrorism Law, bans on foreign media outlets such as Al-Jazeera, and strict military censorship have drastically limited freedom of information. This not only conceals the reality of the war from international audiences but also curtails information among Israelis, limiting their understanding of the war and furthering the government’s narrative of victimhood. Right-wing groups within Israeli society further exacerbate these attacks on journalists, reinforcing impunity and normalising hostility toward the press.
Under international humanitarian law, journalists are considered civilians and must be protected unless directly participating in hostilities. Yet Israel routinely disregards these protections by targeting journalists, whether through airstrikes, drone attacks, arrests, or intimidation, which constitutes a grave violation of the Geneva Conventions and the Rome Statute, amounting to war crimes.
The Geneva International Centre for Justice (GICJ) strongly condemns Israel’s systematic targeting of journalists in Gaza and across the occupied Palestinian territories. GICJ is appalled by smear campaigns branding Palestinian reporters as terrorists to justify attacks and calls for accountability before the International Criminal Court. The organisation urges Israel to respect international law, repeal restrictive legislation on media freedom, and uphold UN Security Council Resolution 1738. Finally, GICJ supports UN Special Rapporteur Irene Khan’s call for journalists covering armed conflicts to be recognised as humanitarian workers, ensuring stronger protection, and urges the UN to establish an independent mechanism to investigate these grave violations and end impunity.
Read the report by clicking on the image below.
