The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate announced today, Wednesday, the results of the report of the Liberties Committee in the Syndicate, noting that the year 2019 witnessed 760 violations and crimes against journalists by the Israeli occupation forces .
The head of the Press Freedom Committee of the Syndicate, Mohamed Lahham, reported during a press conference today, 12 critical injuries with live bullets, 62 cases with rubber coated bullets, 58 cases of direct sound or gas bombs, and 78 cases of gas asphyxia for journalists . Al-Lahham said that there has been a continuous attack against the Palestinian media over the years, which was recently represented in the closure of media institutions, the most recent of which was the closure of the Palestine Satellite Office in Jerusalem, in addition to the implementation of 30 violations against journalists in the Holy City . "The targeting of the electronic content of journalists achieved the highest number of violations, as 250 accounts were blocked and closed, and this was followed by the prevention of journalists from covering, where the report monitored 92 cases of prevention." He pointed out that the year 2019 witnessed a leap in the international effort, noting that the report was prepared in partnership with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization "UNESCO", and that the union seeks to prepare a unified national report in partnership with various institutions. He continued: "Cases of sexual harassment from the Israeli occupation forces against female colleagues have been monitored to force them to evacuate the field, due to their merit and professionalism." Lahham expressed his hope that the year 2020 will be the year of laws, stressing that the union will pay attention to women journalists . He drew attention to the fact that 160 violations were recorded in the Gaza Strip, which included 43 arrests, 23 storming journalists´ homes, 22 summonses for investigation, and 20 cases of beatings. He called on the government in the West Bank to review the court’s decision to block 49 websites . For his part, Abu Bakr said that 2020 will be a year for the passage of media freedom laws in Palestine, foremost of which is the right to obtain information . He added that the union is determined to prosecute the perpetrators of the right of journalists to international justice and European courts. Stressing that normalization is a taboo, and that the union will dismiss all those who are proven guilty of normalization . He demanded that the right to movement be provided to Palestinian journalists . In another context, he announced that the union will organize the centenary celebrations of its founding, calling on journalists to provide the union with works, books and brochures to archive the history of the press in Palestine . The union organized the conference in the presence of the journalist Moaz Amarneh, who lost his eye with the bullets of the occupation, and the journalist Youssef Al-Karnz, whose foot was amputated as a result of being injured by the explosive bullets in his feet and losing his left foot.
