IPI Board: ‘Stop Killing Of Journalists In Gaza’

Members of the International Press Institute (IPI) global Executive Board, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa, have issued a  joint statement calling on Israel to halt the killing of journalists in Gaza following the deaths of at least 80 reporters in Israeli airstrikes.

The IPI said Israel must respect the rules of war, credibly investigate any killings of journalists by its forces, and allow international journalists access to Gaza.

“The undersigned members of the International Press Institute (IPI) Executive Board condemn in the strongest possible terms the unabated killing of journalists in Israeli airstrikes since the start of the Israel-Gaza war,” the statement said.

“We leading editors, journalists, and publishers from 20 countries around the globe are united in horror over this unprecedented attack on journalist safety and press freedom.

We are raising our collective voice which we reserve for the gravest of circumstances to protest this unbearable loss of life and to demand an immediate end to the bombardment of journalists and apparent targeting in some cases of our colleagues in Gaza and the region.

We call on Israel to respect the rules of war, which oblige States to protect journalists and civilians in times of armed conflict. We also call on the Israeli authorities to transparently and credibly investigate all instances of the killing of journalists by its forces. We underscore that deliberately targeting journalists is a war crime, and IPI will work with our partners to pursue accountability before a court of law for those who do so. We also call on Israel to immediately grant international journalists access to Gaza and allow them to report freely and independently” the statement said.

The Board has also called on Israel’s international allies to take immediate and concrete action to protect the rights of journalists to cover this war freely and safely. They must place real and effective pressure on the Israeli authorities to end the killing of journalists and their families in Gaza.

At least 80 journalists have now been killed in Gaza and Southern Lebanon since October.

IPI