Ramallah – Sep. 26th, 2023. This day marks the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian Journalist. On this occasion, the Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms “MADA” extends its highest expressions of appreciation to all male and female colleagues who continued to perform their professional work despite the risks and obstacles and the continued attacks on them.
Since the beginning of this year, violations against journalists and the media in Palestine have escalated in a disturbing manner, as “MADA” documented a total of 398 violations from the beginning of the year until the end of August, which is a bad indicator of the reality of media freedoms, which have been subjected to a widespread campaign of repression targeting journalists by the occupation authorities through the attacks carried out across the Palestinian governorates. MADA also documented a total of 297 Israeli attacks, which reflects a systematic Israeli policy aimed at silencing the Palestinian voice and covering up the occupation’s violations on the ground. Furthermore, 15 Palestinian journalists are still in the occupation’s prisons, five of whom are administrative detainees.
“MADA” continues to emphasize that the Israeli occupation’s violations are the most dangerous and numerous in number against Palestinian journalists, noting an increase in Palestinian violations and the continued persecution of journalists by arrest and detention, the latest of which is the security services’ arrest of freelance journalist TAREQ AL-SARKJI, the evening before yesterday. This is in addition to persecuting activists on social media sites because of their posts or interactions, and other violations targeting journalists and media freedoms in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with Palestinian Journalists, “MADA” renews its call on various institutions and parties, most notably those concerned with media freedoms in the world, to embody their solidarity with Palestinian journalists through practical forms on the ground in order to stop the attacks targeting journalists and media freedoms in Palestine so that they can carry out their work freely and safely, and perform their inherent right to freedom of opinion and expression, which has been affirmed by many international agreements and resolutions, most notably Article (19) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
