Ramallah – 07/09/2025 Violations against media freedoms in Palestine continued at an alarmingly high and dangerous rate throughout August. The number of violations increased by six incidents, or 8%, compared to the preceding month of July.
A total of seventy-nine (79) violations against media freedoms were documented in August 2025, the vast majority of which— seventy-six (76) violations—were perpetrated by the Israeli occupation forces (44 in the West Bank and 32 in the Gaza Strip). In contrast, Palestinian entities in both the West Bank and Gaza were responsible for only two violations.
Additionally, one violation was attributed to the German magazine Bild, which incited against ANAS FATTOUHA, a reporter for the Turkish Anadolu Agency, accusing him of fabricating reports. The accusation came after he published a photograph he had captured, documenting a moment when children stormed a charitable kitchen in Gaza in desperate search of food. This occurred amid heightened blockade measures, border closures, and the ongoing war.
Israeli Violations:
Israeli occupation forces and authorities committed a total of seventy-six (76) violations and assaults against media freedoms in Palestine during the past month of August, constituting ninety-six percent (96%) of all violations recorded during that month.
Israeli violations increased by twenty-three percent (23%) compared to the previous month of July, and escalated in both severity and gravity. Notably, Israeli forces deliberately targeted gatherings of journalists twice during August.
In the first incident, Israeli forces targeted a journalists’ tent near Al-Shifa Hospital, resulting in the killing of six (6) journalists, five (5) of whom were from Al Jazeera, and the serious injury of three (3) others caused by shrapnel from the bombing.
In the second incident, Israeli tank shells struck a media-designated building at Nasser Medical Complex, leading to the killing of five (5) journalists and the injury of four (4) others, most of whom suffered serious and permanent disabilities. These attacks occurred in addition to other individual journalists who were killed separately during the month.
In addition, MADA Center documented twenty (20) physical assaults, eleven (11) of which occurred in the West Bank.
Israeli forces also arrested journalists MUATH AMARNA, who was placed under administrative detention for four (4) months, and OSAID AMARNA, whose whereabouts remained unknown at the time of reporting.
The Palestine TV crew was also detained during a live coverage in the Al-Mas’oudiya area, during which Israeli forces deleted all footage from their cameras. Additionally, journalists NASSER SHTAYYEH (US SIPA) and freelance journalist JAMAL RAYYAN were detained while covering developments near Beit Dajan village.
Israeli forces also prevented twenty-one (21) journalists and media crews from covering events across various governorates. Moreover, they raided the “Abu Judeh Printing and Advertising Press” in Hebron, where they damaged some equipment and confiscated others.
Further violations included: bombing five (5) journalists’ homes, burning two (2) tents used as media offices, incitement against journalist MAHMOUD ABU SALAMA from Gaza by the social media page “Israel Speaks Arabic”, attempted running over by Israeli soldiers on two (2) journalists during coverage of a raid in Ramallah
All of these assaults were carried out deliberately and systematically against journalists, despite their clearly visible professional identification in most cases. The apparent objective was to suppress coverage of the crimes committed by Israeli forces and authorities against Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, during a war that has now continued for six hundred and ninety-five (695) consecutive days.
Palestinian Violations
The number of Palestinian violations against media freedoms declined significantly during the past month of August, with only two (2) violations documented, compared to nine (9) violations recorded by MADA Center in the preceding month of July—reflecting a seventy-eight percent (78%) decrease.
These violations accounted for three percent (3%) of the total number of documented attacks on media freedoms in August.
The documented violations were limited to the arrest of journalist MAZEN AWAD, a reporter for the Iraqi channel Al-Kawthar, by the Palestinian Intelligence Service. He was transferred to the Intelligence prison in Nablus and subsequently referred to the Public Prosecution on charges of “working with a terrorist organization, possession of a weapon, and receiving funds from illegal entities”.
Additionally, MOHAMMAD FAYEZ ABU AOUN, an associate to Oudah TV, received a phone call from an unknown individual who warned both him and his father not to speak publicly about the living conditions in the Gaza Strip, whether on social media or through visual reporting. The caller explicitly threatened them, saying they would have their “tongues cut off” if they did not stop speaking out.
List of Journalists killed in August
|
Name of Journalist |
Date Killed |
Workplace |
|
|
1 |
ANAS ALSHARIF |
10/08/2025 |
Al-Jazeera |
|
2 |
MOHAMMED QRAIQEA |
10/08/2025 |
Al-Jazeera |
|
3 |
IBRAHIM THAHER |
10/08/2025 |
Al-Jazeera |
|
4 |
MOMEN ELAIWAH |
10/08/2025 |
Al-Jazeera |
|
5 |
MOHAMMED NOFAL |
10/08/2025 |
Al-Jazeera |
|
6 |
MOHAMMED ALKHALDI |
10/80/2025 |
SAHAT Platform |
|
7 |
ISLAM ALI ALKOUMI |
18/08/2025 |
ALRISALA Newspaper |
|
8 |
KHALED ALMADHOUN |
23/08/2025 |
Palestine TV and WATAN News Agency |
|
9 |
HUSSAM ALMASSRI |
25/08/2025 |
Reuters and Palestine TV |
|
10 |
MOHAMMED SALAMA |
25/08/2025 |
Al-Jazeera |
|
11 |
MUATH ABU TAHA |
25/08/2025 |
NBC Agency |
|
12 |
MARIAM ABU DUQQA |
25/08/2025 |
Associated Press and The Independent Arabic |
|
13 |
AHMED ABU AZIZ |
25/08/2025 |
Quds Feed Network and Middle East Website |
|
14 |
HASSAN DOUHAN |
25/08/2025 |
Al-Hayat Al-Jadida Newspaper and Al-Aqsa University |
|
15 |
ISLAM ABED |
31/08/2025 |
Quds Today TV |
Details of Violations:
(4th of August) Israeli occupation aircraft destroyed the home of journalist REEMA ABU SUBHA in the town of Abasan al-Kabira, east of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip on the morning of Monday. The journalist had been displaced from the home three months prior.
According to the testimony provided to MADA Center by freelance documentary filmmaker and journalist REEMA MAHMOUD ABU SUBHA, aged forty-two (42), eyewitnesses informed her that Israeli aircraft bombed her house in Abasan al-Kabira, an area considered highly dangerous, at approximately ten o’clock (10:00) on Monday morning. The journalist, like other residents of Khan Younis, had vacated her home following a forced displacement order issued three months ago.
One week before the house was destroyed, the journalist managed to reach her home despite the danger, after Israeli forces withdrew from the town. However, following the bombing, she and her family were left without shelter and are now displaced, residing in a tent in the al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis.
(4th of August) Israeli occupation authorities extended the closure order of the Al Jazeera office in Ramallah for an additional sixty (60) days, after storming the city on Monday morning and posting the renewal order on the building housing the network.
According to the testimony of WALEED AL-OMARI, head of Al Jazeera’s office, to MADA Center, Israeli forces raided central Ramallah on Monday morning and affixed a notice on the building renewing the closure of the Al Jazeera office for another sixty (60) days— a procedure the authorities repeat with each renewal.
It is noteworthy that Israeli authorities first shut down the Ramallah office of Al Jazeera on the 22nd of September 2024, and had previously closed the network’s Jerusalem office on the 5th of May of the same year, under the pretext that the network supports Hamas, promotes terrorism, and poses a threat to Israeli national security.
(5th of August) Israeli soldiers physically assaulted two journalists in the village of Aqaba, east of Tubas, and prevented them from covering the demolition of a school under construction at noon on Tuesday, forcing them to leave the area.
MUATH MAZEN GHANNAM, a twenty-four-year-old (24) reporter for Quds News Network, told MADA Center that he arrived around twelve o’clock (12:00) on Tuesday afternoon with his colleague SALIM BISHARAT, a reporter for Palestine TV, to report on the demolition of a school under construction in Aqaba, east of Tubas.
During the coverage, soldiers—acting under orders from a commanding officer—chased and expelled them from the site. The two journalists sought refuge in the yard of a nearby home and stood at the gate to continue filming. While there, several soldiers began making provocative gestures toward the camera, including raising the victory sign and flexing their muscles, accompanied by Hebrew phrases. One of the phrases they understood was: "Don’t come to film the demolition. We’re not talking to you”.
One of the soldiers, who had been making these provocative gestures, approached and asked: “What are you doing here?” When they replied that they were “press”, the soldier continued speaking in Hebrew. When journalist SALIM asked if he spoke Arabic, the soldier suddenly slapped MUATH GHANNAM across the face and kicked SALIM BISHARAT.
The soldiers then left in a military vehicle but briefly stopped and opened the door, seemingly to check if the journalists had resumed filming.
(Early August) In the early days of August, Israeli bulldozers demolished the home of DR. TAHSEEN AL-ASTAL in Khan Younis. He had left the residence in May after Israeli forces entered the city during a military operation in the southern Gaza Strip.
DR. TAHSEEN AL-ASTAL, fifty-four (54) years old and Deputy Head of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate, told MADA Center that Israeli bulldozers operating in the Al-Satar Al-Gharbi area of Khan Younis razed his house completely, destroying all its contents. He now has no shelter.
DR. AL-ASTAL and his family had left the house about three months ago, following a forced displacement order issued to all residents of Khan Younis. They sought refuge in a tent in the al-Mawasi area west of the city. He later learned of the house’s demolition through neighbors after Israeli forces temporarily pulled back from the area. Upon inspection, he found it reduced to rubble, with large parts of it intentionally turned to debris.
(5th of August) The German newspaper Bild launched an incitement campaign against journalist ANAS FTEHA after publishing a photo in one of its reports on Tuesday evening, which he had captured, showing children storming a charitable kitchen due to starvation in the Gaza Strip.
In his statement to MADA Center, ANAS ZAYED FTEHA, a thirty-one-year-old (31) reporter for Anadolu Agency, said he was surprised by the orchestrated incitement campaign against him by Bild, which distorted his field journalism in Gaza.
The newspaper accused him of fabricating the image, claiming it was part of a "film in production", showing children rushing to get food from a charity kitchen in Gaza City—a scene reflecting the worsening famine due to the ongoing blockade and closed crossings amid war.
FTEHA added that Israeli President ISAAC HERZOG carried the image during a press conference and presented it, alleging: "This journalist from Gaza distorts the truth in line with Hamas’ narrative of famine”.
Journalist ANAS rejected these accusations, affirming they are baseless. He emphasized that he is an independent journalist, unaffiliated with any political party, and has practiced journalism for years. He too has suffered during the war, experiencing displacement, loss, and hunger like other Gaza residents.
However, the incitement was echoed by Israeli media, army spokespersons, and Israeli journalists, who shared Bild's report and further denied the existence of famine in Gaza.
FTEHA confirmed that this campaign has negatively impacted his work with some foreign media outlets under contract, some of which suspended their collaboration with him due to pressure from the German newspaper. He holds Bild responsible for the professional and personal consequences of this incitement campaign against him and his family.
(7th of August) Hebrew-language media incited against Maan TV reporter in the Gaza Strip, journalist MAHMOUD NAEEM ABU SALAMA, on Thursday, accusing him of fabricating news reports about massacres committed by the Israeli occupation in the Strip.
In his testimony to MADA Center, MAHMOUD NAEEM ABU SALAMA, aged thirty-five (35), stated that he had been subjected to incitement by a Facebook page affiliated with the occupation, called “Israel Speaks Arabic”. The page published posts accusing him of fabricating and falsifying reports related to massacres carried out by Israeli forces.
ABU SALAMA added that, according to the Hebrew media, the source of this incitement dates back to the sixteenth (16th) of May 2025, when he was reporting from the field in the town of Beit Lahia, in northern Gaza. At that time, Israeli aircraft bombed a group of civilians while he was present in the area. Due to the absence of ambulances, the journalist used his private vehicle, which bore a press sign, to transport several injured and deceased civilians — women and children — to the Baptist Hospital. While doing so, he documented the humanitarian scene using his phone, showing how the occupation committed atrocities against unarmed civilians. This footage did not sit well with the Israeli military and its media apparatus, which dismissed it as staged and fabricated.
ABU SALAMA views this incitement as a direct threat to his personal safety, especially in light of the increasing number of threats, attacks, and killings of journalists in Gaza by Israeli forces.
(7th of August) Israeli occupation forces destroyed the home of journalist ISLAM AL-ASTAL in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, after bulldozers razed it to the ground. She learned of the destruction while at work, through updated satellite imagery.
In her testimony, reporter and editor for the "Nawa" Network, part of the Falastiniyat Foundation, ISLAM ABDEL HAMID AL-ASTAL, aged forty-four (44), stated that she had been monitoring her home — located in the Al-Satar Al-Gharbi area of Khan Younis — via satellite due to the area’s danger and its location within the zone of Israeli ground operations. She had been forcibly displaced from the home about three months prior, following an Israeli order mandating the evacuation of all residents of Khan Younis to the al-Mawasi area west of the city.
On the seventh (7th) of August 2025, updated satellite images confirmed the destruction of her home following bulldozing by Israeli forces. She is now without shelter, residing in a tent in al-Mawasi, Khan Younis, where she has converted part of the tent into a workspace.
(7th of August) Israeli occupation forces raided the Abu Judeh Printing and Advertising Press in Al-Arroub Refugee Camp, searched the premises, and confiscated numerous pieces of equipment at dawn on Thursday. The owner estimated the financial loss at approximately eighty thousand (80,000) shekels.
According to the testimony of press owner ABDUL RAHMAN SUFYAN ABU JUDEH to MADA Center, Israeli forces and police stormed the Abu Judeh Printing and Advertising Press, located in Al-Arroub Camp, north of Hebron, at around two o’clock (2:00) in the early morning on Thursday.
Upon their arrival, ABU JUDEH, accompanied by one of his employees, was present at the press, having just returned from a worksite. The soldiers detained both of them and confiscated their mobile phones. Another unit raided the press, searched it thoroughly, and tampered with its contents.
Before leaving, the soldiers confiscated five (5) computers used for programming and design, four (4) small printers, electronic panels from three (3) large printers, and the owner's mobile phone. They also damaged the processors of three (3) large printers.
The soldiers issued a confiscation report before departing. The press remains out of operation, and the owner has resorted to outsourcing his remaining work to printing presses in the city of Bethlehem. The financial losses were estimated at around eighty thousand (80,000) shekels.
(10th of August) Six (6) journalists were killed and three (3) others injured with varying degrees of wounds as a result of an Israeli airstrike targeting the journalists’ tent near Al-Shifa Hospital on the evening of Sunday. The attack caused the tent to catch fire and burn completely, along with all its contents.
MOHAMMAD SUBH, a reporter for Al-Kofiya TV and one of the injured journalists, reported that at around ten fifty (10:50) on Sunday evening, he was preparing for a live broadcast in the courtyard of Al-Shifa Hospital, where he briefly met with MOHAMMAD QRAIQEA, a reporter for Al Jazeera, and the two discussed recent political developments in the Strip.
At exactly eleven o’clock (11:00), journalist QRAIQEA went live on air to report on the unfolding events for the news bulletin, accompanied by cameraman MO’MEN ALOUA. After completing their live coverage, each journalist returned to his respective tent.
At eleven twenty (11:20), an Israeli drone suddenly and directly targeted the Al Jazeera journalists’ tent in the courtyard of Al-Shifa Hospital in central Gaza with a missile, igniting a fire that consumed the entire tent. Shrapnel was scattered across the area.
The fire resulting from the missile strike completely destroyed the tent and led to the martyrdom of six (6) journalists — five (5) of whom were working with Al Jazeera. They were: ANAS AL-SHARIF, Al Jazeera's reporter in northern Gaza, MOHAMMAD QRAIQEA, reporter in Gaza City, Cameramen IBRAHIM ZAHER and MO’MEN ALOUA, both based in Gaza City, Freelance cameraman MOHAMMAD NOUFAL, who worked as a camera assistant for Al Jazeera.
In addition, MOHAMMAD AL-KHALDI, an editor and cameraman for the "Sahat" platform, was critically injured by multiple pieces of shrapnel to the chest and back and was martyred several hours later.
As a result of the scattered shrapnel, the following journalists were injured: MOHAMMAD SUBH, Al-Kofiya reporter, sustained a shrapnel injury to his left leg and another that lodged between the fourth and fifth vertebrae, as later confirmed by doctors after he was transported to Al-Shifa Hospital by ambulance crews. Freelance cameraman AHMAD AL-HARAZIN suffered injuries to both legs, and freelance journalist MOHAMMAD QEITA was hit by shrapnel that lodged in his back. All were taken to the emergency department at Al-Shifa Hospital.
Al-Kofiya reporter SUBH confirmed that the attack specifically targeted journalist ANAS AL-SHARIF following incitement campaigns against him and after he had received multiple threats from the Israeli army, its spokespeople, and Hebrew media. The most recent of these threats had occurred just a week earlier, as part of attempts to deny the existence of famine in Gaza — a reality that Al-Sharif and other journalists were documenting. He asserted that the deliberate killing of the journalists was a crime aimed at silencing the truth.
(10th of August) Journalist MOHAMMAD FAIZ ABU AOUN received a threat from an unknown individual via a phone call on Sunday afternoon, warning him not to cover the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.
According to the testimony of MOHAMMAD FAIZ ABU AOUN, a twenty-six-year-old (26) freelance cameraman working with Awda TV, he received a phone call on his personal number at approximately three fifty (3:50) in the afternoon from a private, unidentified number. The caller did not reveal his identity but demanded that he and his father refrain from discussing the humanitarian situation in Gaza on social media or filming scenes from the Strip.
The caller reportedly said: "We will cut off your tongues if you do not stop talking," before ending the call.
ABU AOUN described the call as dangerous and a real threat to his life and the lives of his family members, especially given the ongoing war on Gaza. He said he does not know the identity of the caller or the party behind the threat, but he suspects that his affiliation with Awda TV, which broadcasts from Ramallah in the West Bank and is affiliated with the Fatah movement, may have been the reason for the intimidation and an attempt to stop his collaboration with the channel.
(16th of August) Israeli occupation forces detained the crew of Palestine TV on Saturday morning in the historic area of Al-Masoudiya, located between the cities of Jenin and Nablus, for approximately forty-five (45) minutes. They were released after their recorded materials were deleted and were threatened not to return to the area again.
BADER MOHAMMAD NAJM, a thirty-six-year-old (36) reporter for Palestine TV, testified to MADA Center that at around eleven twenty (11:20) in the morning on Saturday, he and the TV’s cameraman SAOUD HAEL, aged forty-five (45), went to the Al-Masoudiya archaeological site to cover a planned settlement project.
The team was surprised to find a military checkpoint in the area. The cameraman took photos of the checkpoint, and when the soldiers noticed the crew, they detained them, confiscated their personal ID cards, and seized their press equipment. The soldiers proceeded to delete the recordings from the cameras.
The soldiers photographed their ID cards and threatened them with arrest should any images or footage from the site be published. After forty-five (45) minutes of detention, the crew was released, and their equipment was returned. They were ordered to leave the area immediately and warned not to return.
(17th of August) Israeli occupation forces detained two (2) journalists for about twenty (20) minutes at midday on Sunday while they were near the lands of Beit Dajan in the Nablus governorate, covering settler violations in a newly established outpost east of the village.
NASSER SULEIMAN SHTAYYEH, a fifty-six-year-old (56) cameraman for US SIPA Agency, testified to MADA Center that at around eleven o’clock (11:00) on Sunday, he and freelance journalist JAMAL RAYAN were documenting violations by settlers at the newly built outpost near Beit Dajan village lands.
While they were filming a settler herding sheep under the protection of Israeli soldiers, the soldiers assaulted and detained them, preventing them from continuing their work. They remained in custody under the pretext that the area was a “closed military zone” until an Israeli officer arrived and ordered their release — warning them not to publish any of the footage taken.
(18th of August) Journalist and editor at Al-Risala Newspaper, ISLAM ALI AL-KOUMI, aged thirty-six (36), was martyred in an Israeli artillery shelling that struck his home in the Al-Sabra neighborhood, south of Gaza City, on Monday evening.
According to his brother BILAL AL-KOUMI, who spoke to MADA Center, the journalist ISLAM was at home with his family at around seven o’clock (7:00) on Monday evening when Israeli forces suddenly launched an intense barrage of artillery shells and drone-fired missiles on the area. One shell directly hit the journalist's house, killing him instantly along with one of his children, and injuring the rest of the family with varying degrees of wounds.
BILAL stated that hours before the attack, he had appealed to international and local organizations to assist in evacuating the family from the house, which had been besieged from the east by Israeli forces for about four (4) days. However, due to the danger, no evacuation was possible. ISLAM AL-KOUMI was killed while continuing his journalistic duties under siege and bombardment.
(19th of August) Israeli warplanes bombed the home of journalist MAZEN AL-BALBISI on Tuesday afternoon, completely destroying it and turning it into rubble.
In his testimony, MAZEN ABDUL KARIM AL-BALBISI, a thirty-eight-year-old (38) reporter for Oman TV, told MADA Center that at around twelve thirty (12:30) in the afternoon on Tuesday, he was working on preparing a TV report when he received a phone call from his brother. His brother informed him that they had just received a call from an Israeli intelligence officer demanding the immediate evacuation of the house in preparation for an airstrike.
Due to the short notice, the family was unable to evacuate. Israeli warplanes directly bombed the five-story house, completely destroying it. When the journalist arrived at the scene, he found that the entire building had collapsed, and the home had been reduced to rubble.
(19th of August) The Palestinian General Intelligence Service arrested journalist MAZEN AWAD, aged forty-seven (47), a reporter for the Iraqi channel Al-Kawthar, from his hometown of Awarta, south of Nablus in the West Bank, after raiding his home at dawn on Tuesday.
According to his brother SAMER AWAD, the intelligence forces raided the house in Awarta village, searched the property, confiscated Mazen’s mobile phone, and then arrested him, transferring him to the Intelligence Detention Center in Nablus.
The journalist was brought before the Public Prosecution on Wednesday morning on charges of “working with a terrorist organization, possessing weapons, and receiving funds from unauthorized sources”. He was referred to the Nablus Magistrate Court, where his detention was extended for fifteen (15) days.
SAMER expressed surprise at the charges, noting that the channel Al-Kawthar, with which MAZEN works, operates legally through a licensed company. He also clarified that MAZEN AWAD had previously worked with several local media outlets before joining the Iraqi channel.
The journalist was released on Monday, the first (1st) of September, on a personal bail of two thousand (2,000) Jordanian dinars.
(20th of August) An Israeli special unit arrested photojournalist MUATH AMARNA, aged thirty-seven (37), on Wednesday evening while he was leaving the city of Bethlehem en route to Hebron, in the southern West Bank. The arrest occurred after his vehicle was intercepted and forced to stop.
According to field research by MADA Center, journalist OSAYD AMARNA, a relative of MUATH, reported that the arrest happened suddenly and swiftly. MUATH and his wife noticed a civilian car following them, and as they approached the entrance of Husan town, located between Bethlehem and Hebron, the car quickly closed in and threatened them with firearms, forcing MUATH to halt his vehicle.
The assailants were dressed in civilian clothes and wearing caps with Hebrew writing, driving a civilian vehicle, not a military one. They arrested MUATH, confiscated his personal phone, and ordered his wife to return with the vehicle. She was informed that MUATH would be transferred to the Etzion detention center, located between Bethlehem and Hebron.
On the following day, Thursday, the 21st of August, 2025, the family learned that MUATH was being held in Ofer Prison, west of Ramallah. On the 28th of August, the Israeli authorities issued a four-month (4) administrative detention order against him.
It is worth noting that journalist MUATH AMARNA lost his left eye on the 20th of November, 2019, after being struck by a live bullet that lodged in his skull while covering an event in the Surif area west of Hebron.
(23rd of August) Israeli occupation forces prevented press crews from covering the raid into the village of Al-Mughayyir, near Ramallah, on Saturday, after blocking all access routes leading to the village and barring journalists from approaching.
MOHAMMED ALWAN, a forty-one-year-old (41) journalist working with TRT World, stated that he was the first to arrive on Saturday morning to cover the military incursion into Al-Mughayyir, a village surrounded by mountains northeast of Ramallah. Israeli soldiers had erected a military checkpoint at one of the entrances and closed all access points.
Several media crews attempted to cover the event but could not cross the mountainous terrain due to the presence of Israeli settlers. Journalists attempted to capture images from nearby village entrances. These included crews from Palestine TV, Al-Araby TV, TRT World, and Press TV (consisting of reporter NIQAA HAMED and cameraman NIDAL AL-MASRI).
After a short while, the teams cautiously moved forward a few meters to begin coverage. An officer instructed them to film from the opposite side. As they attempted to comply, a soldier appeared and prohibited any filming, demanding they retreat approximately one hundred (100) meters. The sudden arrival of a settler then forced the journalists to leave the area entirely and relocate to another site where villagers were gathering on the outskirts of the village.
(23rd of August) Photojournalist KHALED MOHAMMAD AL-MADHOUN, aged fifty (50), who worked for Palestine TV and was the director of Wattan News Agency, was killed by Israeli gunfire while on duty north of Gaza City on Saturday evening.
According to photojournalist MOHAMMAD NASSAR, his colleague KHALED AL-MADHOUN was on a reporting mission on Saturday evening to document the entry of aid trucks through the Israeli-controlled Zikim crossing, located north of Gaza City.
At approximately three thirty (3:30) in the afternoon, Israeli soldiers opened heavy fire toward civilians seeking aid. One bullet struck the upper part of KHALED’s body, and he was transported to Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, where he was officially declared dead.
NASSAR added that the martyr KHALED AL-MADHOUN had consistently documented the war and Israeli violations on behalf of Palestine TV and Wattan News Agency, diligently capturing the unfolding developments and atrocities in both video and photographs since the beginning of the war.
(24th of August) Israeli occupation forces obstructed the work of press crews in the town of Al-Mughayyir on Sunday, preventing them from covering the army's withdrawal after a seventy-two (72) hour-long military operation which included raids, land bulldozing, and the uprooting of trees.
According to journalist MOHAMMAD TURKMAN, several journalists and media crews—including Al Araby TV reporter FADI AL-ASSA and cameraman HADI SABARNA, as well as journalist MAHMOUD KHALAF from Palestine TV—headed to the area of land bulldozing in Al-Mughayyir, northeast of Ramallah, shortly after Israeli forces withdrew.
As local residents gathered near the Al-Sahl area to replant trees and inspect their lands, Israeli forces re-entered the area, causing residents to flee. Only the journalists remained, continuing their coverage. However, the Israeli soldiers began harassing and impeding their work.
The soldiers first deployed a drone to film the journalists, then used it to disrupt their work by emitting loud noises near the cameras and stirring up dust by flying close to the ground. This disturbance ultimately forced the press crews to leave the location.
(25th of August) Five (5) journalists were killed and four (4) others injured on Monday morning while on duty at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, after three tank shells struck the building within minutes of each other.
According to eyewitness journalist KHALED SHAAT, at approximately ten ten (10:10)AM, Israeli tanks shelled the eastern section of the Yaseen Building inside the Nasser Medical Complex, about one kilometer from Israeli positions, where journalists had gathered.
The first shell directly hit HOSSAM ATIYA AL-MASRI, a forty-eight (48)-year-old photojournalist working with Reuters and Palestine TV, who was standing on the fourth floor, operating a live broadcast camera for Reuters. The shell struck the camera, instantly killing him.
Upon hearing the explosion and seeing smoke, fellow journalists rushed to the scene to document the incident. At approximately ten seventeen (10:17)AM, while photographing the aftermath and their fallen colleague, two more shells struck the site without warning, targeting the journalists, medics, and rescue workers who had just arrived.
The shelling caused massive destruction, shrapnel dispersal, and a partial building collapse. The following journalists were killed in the second attack: MOHAMMAD SABER SALAMEH, aged twenty-seven (27), cameraman for Al Jazeera, MUATH MOHAMMAD ABU TAHA, aged thirty (30), cameraman for NBC News, MARYAM ABU DAQA, cameraman for Associated Press and The Independent Arabia, whose body was completely dismembered, and AHMAD SALAMEH ABU AZEEZ, aged twenty-eight (28), reporter for Quds Feed Network and Middle East Eye, who was initially transferred to intensive care and declared dead two hours later.
Additionally, four journalists sustained varying injuries: HATEM OMAR, cameraman for Reuters and Xinhua News Agency, suffered injuries to the head, face, and both hands, JAMAL BADDAH, cameraman for Palestine TV, had his right leg amputated above the knee, MOHAMMAD FAYEQ, a freelance cameraman, suffered partial paralysis due to spinal injuries, along with shrapnel wounds to the head, left hand, and other parts of the body, and MOHAMMAD ASHRAF SALAMEH, a freelance cameraman working with multiple news networks, was injured in the left shoulder by shrapnel
The injured journalists were covered in blood; HATEM OMAR continued holding his camera despite injuries to his face and head. All four were transferred to Nasser Hospital’s emergency department, where they remain under medical care.
(25th of August) DR. HASSAN MUSTAFA DOUHAN, aged fifty-one (51), a journalism professor at Al-Aqsa University and reporter for Al-Hayat Al-Jadida Newspaper, was killed by an Israeli drone strike on Monday afternoon while inside his tent in Mawasi Khan Younis, southern Gaza.
According to his son YOUSEF, DR. DOUHAN was inside his tent on Al-Istabl Street at around three thirty (3:30)PM, when a quad-copter drone fired a live bullet that penetrated the tent, striking him directly.
The bullet entered through his shoulder and exited through his lower back, killing him instantly. He was transported by ambulance to Nasser Hospital, where his death was confirmed.
DR. HASSAN DOUHAN had remained active in his professional duties until shortly before his death, continuing to write articles for Al-Hayat Al-Jadida and teaching journalism courses online, despite the harsh conditions of war and displacement.
(26th of August) Israeli occupation forces obstructed the work of journalists, fired stun grenades at them, and physically assaulted a photojournalist during a military raid in Ramallah on Tuesday afternoon. Two Palestinian journalists also survived an attempted ramming by an Israeli military vehicle while covering the incident.
According to DIAA HOUSHIYA, reporter for Al-Ghad Al-Arabi TV, he and his colleague HISHAM ABU SHAKRA, a cameraman for Anadolu Agency, were covering the raid in Ramallah at approximately eleven fifteen (11:15)AM while wearing press vests and carrying press equipment. Soldiers fired more than five stun and tear gas grenades toward them to drive them away.
As the two journalists attempted to cross the street to move to a safer location, a military vehicle deliberately swerved toward them in an apparent attempt to run them over. They narrowly escaped, while still under bombardment from sound and gas grenades. Meanwhile, Israeli press crews were freely covering the events without obstruction.
Photojournalist IMAD SAEED, who works for the Associated Press (AP), told the MADA Center that he was present around eleven o’clock (11:00)AM on Rukab Street in central Ramallah, where Israeli soldiers were raiding a currency exchange shop. A group of journalists, including IMAD, had gathered to document the incident.
While filming, one Israeli officer signaled directly at SAEED, apparently upset about being filmed. Moments later, as the journalist approached, the officer struck him with his hand and demanded that all journalists leave. Soldiers then fired stun grenades, forcing the journalists to withdraw approximately fifty (50) meters away to continue their coverage.
(27th of August) Several journalists suffered tear gas inhalation while covering an Israeli military raid in the city of Nablus on Wednesday, and a Border Police vehicle later chased another group of journalists, threatening them and obstructing coverage.
Freelance journalist SIDQI AYYOUB RAYAN (aged 24) told the MADA Center that he was present at around eleven twenty (11:20)AM on Faisal Street, near the “Balour Hall” in Nablus, covering the raid. Israeli forces began chasing the journalists using military jeeps, firing stun and tear gas grenades directly at them to force them out of the area.
Several journalists suffered from gas inhalation and were treated on-site by Red Crescent ambulances. Those affected included: HAFEZ ABU SABRA, reporter for Roya TV, FADI MUNA, NASSER SHTAYYEH, cameraman for US SIPA Press, WALAA FTAYYER, SAJIDA BANI SHAMSA from Al-Madina TV, MUSAB AL-KHATIB, and FADI YASSIN, cameraman for Al Jazeera
Later that day, at around one fifty-four (1:54)PM, freelance journalist ABDULLAH TAYSEER BAHSH (aged 28) reported that a group of journalists and media crews were gathered in the Martyrs' Square area in Nablus when an Israeli Border Police vehicle approached, using loudspeakers to force them to evacuate under the threat of force.
The vehicle continued to chase the journalists, honking and attempting to ram them, forcing them to flee toward Faisal Street, opposite the National Government Hospital.
Identified journalists present included: AMEED SHEHADEH (reporter) and RABEE MUNEER (cameraman) from Al Araby TV, SHADI JARAR’AH and KHALED BDEIR from Al-Ghad TV, MAHMOUD FAWZI and HAFEZ ABU SABRA from Roya TV, YAZAN HAMAYEL, MOHAMMAD AL-FAR, and WALAA FTAYYER from Al-Fajr TV, SAJIDA BANI SHAMSA and ABDULRAHMAN DUMEIDI from Al-Madina TV, MUJAHID TABANJEH from Palestine Post, SIDQI RAYAN (freelance), AMEERA HAMOUDA from Hayat Radio, LAITH JA’AR and FADI YASSIN from Al Jazeera, OMAYR SITYEH from An-Najah TV, and ABDULLAH ABU SABRA, cameraman for Palestine TV.
(27th of August) Israeli occupation forces arrested freelance journalist OSAYD AMARNA on Wednesday evening while he was returning home with his family in Dheisheh Refugee Camp, located north of Bethlehem.
According to his father’s testimony to the MADA Center, the journalist and his family were traveling in their car when, at approximately eleven fifty-five (11:55)PM, an Israeli special forces unit intercepted them near the “Qabr Hilwa” area. The unit stopped the vehicle, arrested OSAYD, confiscated his mobile phone, and transferred him to an unknown location.
(30th of August) Israeli warplanes targeted a residential apartment in a building opposite the headquarters of "Aalam News", which hosts the offices of Algerian Television in central Gaza City, causing severe damage to the facility.
According to SALAMA AL-AWAWDEH, reporter for Algerian TV, he was inside the "Aalam News" building along with ten (10) crew members when they heard a massive explosion that shook the structure, filled the area with dust and debris, and caused parts of the building to collapse. It was later confirmed that an Israeli reconnaissance drone had fired three missiles at an apartment in the building directly across from their office.
The force of the blast resulted in major structural damage to the Al-Aalam News premises, including collapsed walls and extensive destruction. Despite the proximity and intensity of the strike, the entire TV crew escaped unharmed, managing to evacuate the site safely.
(31st August) Journalist FAIZ OUSSAMA QREIQEA (aged 31), working with BBC and also collaborating with Al Jazeera, was injured in an Israeli airstrike on Sunday afternoon while covering an attack in the Al-Sabra neighborhood of Gaza City.
In his testimony, QREIQEA stated that at approximately 2:00PM, he arrived at the site of an Israeli airstrike on a residential home in Al-Sabra. He was clearly identifiable as a journalist, wearing a press vest marked accordingly, and was documenting the aftermath of the strike, which had resulted in casualties and destruction.
Shortly after arriving, Israeli aircraft returned and bombed another nearby house, causing debris and shrapnel to strike QREIQEA in the back and left shoulder. He was transported by ambulance to Al-Shifa Hospital, where he received treatment in the emergency department.
(31st August) Journalist ISLAM MUHAREB ABED (aged 36) was killed in an Israeli airstrike targeting her apartment in central Gaza City on Sunday evening.
According to investigations conducted by MADA Center, and based on the account of her colleague MAHMOUD AL-AWAWDEH, ABED was at home with her husband and children at approximately 7:40PM when Israeli warplanes targeted their apartment with multiple missiles. The home collapsed completely, resulting in the deaths of ABED, her husband, and several of their children, whose bodies were mutilated by the blast.
Civil defense teams struggled to recover the remains from beneath the rubble due to the extensive destruction. The victims were transferred to Al-Hilal Al-Ahmar Hospital in the Sarayya area of Gaza City.
Journalist ISLAM ABED died while on duty, having spent her final hours working on a report about displaced civilians amidst the ongoing Israeli threats to occupy Gaza City
