With only one reported violation of media freedoms in the first half of September, the Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms (MADA) was optimistic about this month’s report. Unfortunately we documented more violations by both Israeli and Palestinian forces in the second half of September. Once again, these represent serious attacks on the media freedoms of journalists working in the West Bank and Gaza and leads to more deterioration of freedom of expression in oPt.
Israeli violations of media freedoms:
An Israeli soldier fired a rubber bullet at Al-Quds newspaper photographer Mahmoud E’lyan while he was covering clashes in Shu’fat Camp, in Jerusalem on Tuesday 18 September 2012. E’lyan reported the bullet hit him in the side and caused severe pain.
Israeli forces detained three journalists who were reporting on the construction of a new settlement near Gush Etzion complex settlement in south Bethlehem. Al-Quds newspaper photographer Mahmoud E’lyan, Palestinian public TV cameraman Faris Radwan and a freelance Canadian journalist reported they were held for two hours on Tuesday 18 September 2012.
Quds net and Al-Arab website correspondent Diala Jweehan reported that she was attacked twice while covering a peaceful march in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners on Saturday 8 September 2012 in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of Jerusalem. where one of the Israeli elements of the police pushed her strongly, She was reportedly injured in the neck when a large piece of glass was thrown at her.
Palestinian violations of media freedoms:
Palestinian security services arrested the director of the West Bank office of the Felesteen newspaper, journalist Walid Khalid at his home in Iskaka village, Salfit, on the afternoon of 18 September 2012. The Magistrate's Court in Nablus refused bail on Thursday 27 September, noting that it rejected a similar request from MADA lawyer on Monday 24 September. Security services also arrested Al-Quds press agency correspondent Mohammad Muna in Nablus on Wednesday 19 September 2012.
In the Gaza Strip, writer and blogger Yousri Al Ghoul is the director of “Madarat” magazine which is affiliated to Ministry of culture. Al Ghoul was investigated by the General Personnel Council after being accused of publishing "literary thoughts” and he has been pressured to remove it from his blog.
In addition, members of the Hamas government’s internal security in Gaza beat “Palestine today” TV cameraman Ismail al Badah, while he was filming a burning home in Bureij. The fire, on 25 September, resulted in the death of one child and left the father and another child with injuries. On the same day an unknown person threatened "Sout al Sha’ab” Radio in Gaza, also in connection to live coverage of the house fire.
Hamas government internal security in Gaza prevented journalists from covering a march near the Legislative Council, which was demanding an end to the division between Hamas and Fatah in Palestine.
Conclusion and recommendations:
The Palestinian Center for Development & Media Freedoms(MADA) condemns these new attacks on media freedoms in Palestine. MADA calls on the international community to intervene to protect journalists from repeated and dangerous by Israeli forces attacks. Officials must be held accountable for these violations, and detained journalists must be released immediately.
The Centre also calls on authorities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip to keep the media separate from the internal tensions between Fateh and Hamas. MADA also calls for the immediate release of journalists Walid Khaled and Mohammed Mona.
MADA Center welcomes the decision of the United Nations Human Rights Council regarding the safety of journalists which was adapted in the twenty-first session on 27 September 2012. We hope that this decision will have a positive effect on the safety of journalists in the occupied Palestinian territories, particularly given the reported deaths of 20 journalists over the past decade, for which Israeli forces have not been held accountable.
Details of violations:
8 September 2012: Correspondent for “Quds Net” and “Al Arab”, Diala Jweehan, was attacked twice while covering a peaceful march of solidarity with Palestinian prisoners in Sheikh Jarrah, Jerusalem. Jweehan reported to MADA Center: "I went to cover the events near one of the shops where one of the Israeli elements of the police pushed me strongly, I went to another place and continued my work”, she added then a large piece of glass hit her in the neck. “I don’t know who hit me but it was strong and caused a large wound .I was transferred to "Kupat Holim" hospital in West Jerusalem for treatment”.
18 September 2012: Israeli forces attacked “Al-Quds” newspaper photographer Mahmoud E’lyan while he was covering clashes in the Shuafat refugee camp in Jerusalem. E’lyan reported to MADA Center that he went to cover the clashes and was standing at a distance from both protesters and Israeli forces. He told MADA: while filming the events, a rubber bullet fired by Israeli forces hit me in the side. It was a very painful injury, iwas treated in anearby clinic.
18 September 2012: Israeli forces detained three journalists while they were covering the construction of a new settlement, near “Gush Etzion” settlement, south Bethlehem. One of the detained journalists, Mahmoud E’lyan from “Al Quds”, newspaper said that Israeli soldiers arrested him with Palestinian public TV cameraman Faris Radwan and a Canadian freelance photographer working in the West Bank. E’lyan added: “We were held for about two hours and then released.”
18 September 2012: Palestinian preventive security services arrested the director of the West Bank office of “felelesteen” newspaper, Walid Khalid, at his home in Iskaka village, Salfit. Khalid appeared in the Magistrate's Court in Nablus on 20 September, where his detention was extended for 15 days, pending investigation. The court refused to release Khalid on bail on Thursday 27 September. It rejected a similar request submitted by MADA lawyers on Monday 24 September.
19 September 2012: In Nablus city, Palestinian security services arrested “Quds” press agency correspondent Mohammad Muna. A MADA lawyer reported that Muna appeared in the Nablus Magistrate's Court on 26 September, where his detention was extended for 15 days, pending investigation.
24 September 2012: Writer and blogger Yosri Alghoul, who is also the editor of “Madarat” Magazine which is affiliated to the Ministry of Culture in Gaza, was investigated by the General Personnel Council after he was accused of publishing “literary thoughts”. He has also been pressured to remove it from his blog. Al Ghoul reported: I was interrogated twice: the first time in relation to the article and my intentions in writing it, and the second time based on alleged conversations between myself and Ministry staff about Mohammad al-Madhoun, the Minister of Culture and Youth and Sport. I told them if I was being investigated for the alleged conversation, then why was I only interrogated the first time about the article and why was I pressured to remove the article from my blog.
25 September 2012: Members of the Hamas government’s internal security in Gaza beat “Palestine Today” TV cameraman Ismail al Badah while he was filming the burning house in Bureij. The fire resulted in the death of a child and left his father and another child with injuries. Al- Badah reported to MADA Center that a group of individuals from the internal security approached and asked him to stop filming, which he did. Al Badah added: although I stopped filming, about four men approached and beat me severely. Then they took me to a deserted place for interrogation. I was questioned about why I was filming and I told them I am a photographer for "Palestine Today”. They began abusing me and the TV channel. I was released after an hour and 15 minutes.
25 September 2012: An unknown person threatened “Sout Al Aha’b” radio in Gaza on the back of live covering of the house fire at Al Breige in the Gaza strip. “Sout Al Sha’b” director Hussien Al Jamad, reported to MADA that the radio station was covering the incident and ensuing protests, when an unknown person contacted the radio station and threatened staff with assault. Al Jamal added: “I want to send the message that we regularly receive threats when we cover such events in the strip, and staff had been subject to several attacks. I call on authorities to protect the safety of journalists and allow them to do their work freely.”
25 September 2012: Hamas government internal security prevented journalists from covering a march near the Legislative Council in the Gaza strip, which was demanding an end to the internal division between Fatah and Hamas. French Agency photographer, Mohammad Albaba, reported that a large number of Hamas government forces prevented journalists from doing their job, saying the march was unlicensed. He added: “During my coverage, one of the security men came and asked me to close the camera and I asked to see his official orders. He told me that the march was unlicensed, so coverage was forbidden.
