International media must fully recognize journalists killed while working for them in Gaza

Read in Arabic / للقراءة بالعربية

Skyline International for Human Rights (SIHR) condemns in the strongest terms the Israeli military strikes that deliberately targeted and killed five Palestinian journalists at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Yunis today. We honor the lives and courageous work of Mariam Abu Daqah, Mohammad Salama, Moaz Abu Taha, Ahmad Abu Aziz, and Hussam al-Masri, journalists murdered while bearing witness to Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

In the aftermath of their killings, we have observed with profound dismay how several major international news agencies, including the Associated Press and Reuters, issued statements describing their slain colleagues with qualifying and diminishing language. Terms such as “freelancers not on assignment” and “contractors” create a dangerous and false hierarchy among journalists, suggesting that some lives and contributions are less significant than others.

At a time when the Israeli military’s blockade has systematically denied international media access to Gaza, these local journalists were on the frontlines of reporting, providing the only window through which the world could see what was happening. They were, for all meaningful purposes, the eyes, ears, and voice of the international news agencies that published their work.

This practice is a profound injustice, effectively absolving news organizations of their moral and professional duty toward the very individuals who made their coverage possible. Amid mounting atrocities and a near-total information blackout, where more than 270 journalists have been killed by Israeli forces to date, these were not “optional contributors.” They were the essential link to the ground truth. To diminish their role in death is to participate in the very silencing they resisted in life.

International human rights law upholds the right to seek, receive, and impart information. The work of these journalists embodied that right. When media outlets employ language that reduces or questions their professional standing, they not only dishonor their memory but also undermine the very principle of a free press they claim to defend.

Skyline International calls on all international media agencies to fulfill their profound duty to the local journalists without whom they would have no coverage from Gaza. We demand that they:

• Publicly and unequivocally acknowledge the indispensable role of local journalists in Gaza, recognizing them as full and essential partners in the newsgathering process.
• End the use of terminology that qualifies or diminishes the status of journalists based on contractual arrangements.
• Reaffirm their commitment to the safety, rights, and dignity of all journalists they work with, and advocate robustly for their protection in accordance with international law.

Neutrality must never equate to moral ambiguity. The pursuit of objectivity cannot come at the cost of basic humanity and fairness. The world’s news agencies must stand in unwavering solidarity with the journalists on the front lines, including their own reporters in Gaza. They must honor their memory not with qualifying language, but with the full respect and recognition they earned while risking everything to bring the world the truth.