Israel Commits 476 Violations Against Palestinian Journalists in 2020

Caption: Israeli soldiers throw smoke grenades at a group of people including journalists during an annual demonstration in memory of the 1994 Ibrahimi Mosque massacre, in Hebron, on 22 February 2019. [HAZEM BADER/AFP]

The Journalist Support Committee in Palestine documented in its 2020 annual report an increase in Israeli’s assault against freedoms in the occupied Palestinian territories.

According to the report, at least 476 violations of the right to freedom of the press were committed by Israel this year, while 127 violations were committed by Palestinian parties.

This includes crimes of violating the right to life and personal safety of journalists, and beating, violating, and insulting them.

It also highlighted Israeli forces excessive targeting of Palestinian journalists and their deliberate firing of live rubber-coated metal bullets and poisonous gas canisters to keep journalists away from scenes where Israeli forces commit crimes against citizens.

According to the Committee, the Israeli forces continued to raid journalists' homes and media offices, confiscating their equipment, preventing them from covering and traveling, arresting and detaining them, imposing financial fines on a number of them, and deporting others under conditions that restrict their freedom of movement, work, and expression.

The report cited the case of journalist Widad al-Barghouti, who was arrested after Israeli forces raided and searched her home in the village of Kobar, northwest of Ramallah.

The report further called on the United Nations and the countries of the whole world to exercise their moral and legal role in deterring the occupying state inhuman practices against the Palestinian people and journalists, and to provide them with the necessary protection to fulfill their professional, national, and humanitarian role.

Also, the report urged international press institutions to disclose the Israeli practices towards Palestinian journalists on the widest scale, to pressure on the Israeli occupation to stop these violations, and to preserve freedom of journalistic work.