"In a strongly-worded letter to the Israeli Prime Minister, the heads of the world's major media organizations have called on the Israeli state to end its two-week long blackout on media from the Gaza Strip. Israel closed the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territory of Gaza to the media when the state began a new attack in violation of the ceasefire agreement with Palestinian armed factions.
In the letter, the heads of major media networks, the executive editor of the New York Times, and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon all called on Israel to allow journalists to enter Gaza in order to do their jobs.
The Israeli Defense Ministry stated in response that media coverage of the Gaza Strip had been unfairly biased against Israel, and the ban on journalists would not be lifted until the firing of homemade shells by the Palestinian resistance in Gaza came to a complete halt.
Journalists around the world expressed their outrage at the Israeli position, stating that perceived bias in media coverage is no excuse for the repression and censorship of journalists. In addition, the ban on media violates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states, “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference, and impart information and ideas through any media regardless of frontiers.”
Israeli journalists have been banned from entering Gaza for over two years, since the Israeli siege on the Gaza Strip began. Many international journalists have also been kept out of Gaza, but until two weeks ago, a select group of Israeli-approved international journalists had been allowed to enter. Now, even those few journalists with Israeli government credentials have been denied entry into the besieged coastal strip."
In the letter, the heads of major media networks, the executive editor of the New York Times, and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon all called on Israel to allow journalists to enter Gaza in order to do their jobs.
The Israeli Defense Ministry stated in response that media coverage of the Gaza Strip had been unfairly biased against Israel, and the ban on journalists would not be lifted until the firing of homemade shells by the Palestinian resistance in Gaza came to a complete halt.
Journalists around the world expressed their outrage at the Israeli position, stating that perceived bias in media coverage is no excuse for the repression and censorship of journalists. In addition, the ban on media violates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states, “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference, and impart information and ideas through any media regardless of frontiers.”
Israeli journalists have been banned from entering Gaza for over two years, since the Israeli siege on the Gaza Strip began. Many international journalists have also been kept out of Gaza, but until two weeks ago, a select group of Israeli-approved international journalists had been allowed to enter. Now, even those few journalists with Israeli government credentials have been denied entry into the besieged coastal strip."
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