At some point in the not too distant future Gaza could reopen to international news organizations. But many people aren’t sure about the policy of the Israel Defense Forces toward working journalists. No one has taken responsibility for the October, 2023 tank shelling in Lebanon near the Israeli border that killed one journalist and wounded six others.
Multiple investigations indicate an Israeli tank crew was almost certainly responsible. However, the Israeli government has not released any details about any investigation of the incident. The lack of accountability prompted the National Press Club’s Press Freedom Center to host a panel discussion about the attack, and that’s the focus of the latest Update-1 podcast.
The panel includes two reporters who were wounded in the attack and a colleague of Reuters cameraman Issam Abdallah, the journalist who died. There’s also a video message from AFP photographer Christina Assi, who was so badly injured that one of her legs had to be amputated. In her message she says her survival comes with a responsibility — to keep sharing this story that others try to silence. She describes herself as a journalist who refuses to be silenced.
Seven journalists from Reuters, AFP and al Jazeera were on a hillside in Lebanon on Oct. 13, 2023. They were there filming the shelling being exchanged between Israeli and Lebanese forces along the border when the attack occurred. Jason Rezaian, the director of press freedom initiatives for The Washington Post, and a consultant to the Press Freedom Center, moderated the discussion, saying this is a story that hasn’t received enough attention and needs to be told.
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