During the monthly report on the state of press freedoms in June 2021, the Committee to Support Journalists monitored more than (233) violations against media freedoms and journalists, including (111) Israeli violations, and (83) violations by Palestinian internal parties and unknown persons, in addition to recording more than (39) cases of violations by social media companies, in the context of combating Palestinian content and obliterating the crimes of the occupation.
The Israeli occupation forces and its settlers committed a total of (111) attacks against media freedoms and press crews, injuring (37) journalists, using metal bullets, poison gas bombs, sound bombs, pepper gas, spraying with sewage, beating with sticks and rifle butts, insulting and spitting on them. and threatened to kill them.
Meanwhile, the occupation forces arrested and detained more than (8) journalists, including Ala Al-Daya, Guevara Al-Budairi, Mona Al-Kurd, Anan Najib, who arrested him before the expiry of his banishment from Jerusalem, Walid Khaled Harb (still detained), Khaled Mutawa, Rami Qandah, and Mahmoud Fawzi, and the occupation courts postponed three (3) journalists, Hazem Nasr twice, and Tariq Abu Zaid, and imposed house arrest on (3) journalists, namely, Alaa Al-Daya, Zina Al-Halawani and Wahbi Makiya.
In continuation to obscure the crimes of the occupation against the citizens, the occupation forces prevented with the participation of settlers who obstruct the work of journalists by placing their hats on the cameras’ lenses, insulting them, beating them and spraying pepper gas on them. They do not hold a card issued by the so-called Israeli government press office to enter the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, and they have been expelled, insulted and assaulted, in addition to the registration of one case of travel ban against journalist Majdoleen Hassouna, whose ban was renewed several times.
The report monitored the case of closing the office of number (1) and preventing Palestine TV crews from working, after the occupation forces issued a decision to close the TV office and prevent its work and crews from working in occupied Jerusalem for the fourth time in a row.
The report documented that (3) journalists were subjected to threats, incitement and death threats, in an attempt to pressure and intimidate them from practicing their professional work to expose the crimes of the occupation.
The report’s monitoring showed (5) cases of intrusion into the press and homes of journalists Adnan Najib, Muhammad Mona and Walid Harb, and journalist Mona Al-Kurd, and the registration of (6) cases of destruction and confiscation of equipment, vehicles, mobile phones and press cards to curb their professional journalistic work in publishing what the occupation commits daily in the lands occupied Palestinian territory.
And regarding the occupation’s torture and harassment of journalists inside the occupation’s prisons or during their arrest and interrogation, the committee recorded (5) cases, including the transfer of the journalist Hazem Nasr to the Megiddo desert prison, as well as the transfer of the journalist Mona Al-Kurd to the Al-Maskobiya police station, subject to intensive investigation, threats and accusations of inciting riots, and harming peace Al-Ahly, and 3 journalists were forced to pay a fine before being released, they are Alaa Al-Daya, Zina Al-Halawani and Wahbi Makiya.
On the side of combating Palestinian content, the Israeli occupation forces, in coordination with the Department of Social Media, and in collusion with the FBI and the US Department of Commerce, closed Palestinian websites, blocking, deleting and restricting many accounts of journalists and media organizations, as part of them was monitored and counted (39) in violation. .
The FBI and the US Department of Commerce banned the Palestine Today TV website without any prior notice or justification, and Instagram joined the electronic executions of Palestinian content and restricted (2), Twitter closed (6), while Facebook was closed, deleted, and restricted. For (28) journalists, Tik Tok recorded (2), and it reduced the arrival of video clips and videos to followers.
During its monthly report, the Journalists Support Committee recorded (83) violations by the Palestinian security services in the West Bank, including two cases by unknown persons inside the occupied, and two cases in the Gaza Strip.
The committee recorded (23) cases of assault and injury to journalists and photographers, including 8 female journalists, during which the security forces used the method of beating their heads and faces with sticks, pushing and humiliating them, and targeting them with pepper gas bombs, which led to their injuries, burns, bruises and suffocation during their coverage of protests and events in the center of Ramallah condemning the killing Activist Nizar Banat.
The committee documented (22) cases of destruction of vehicles, cameras and homes of journalists and threats of death and arrest, including two journalists inside the occupied territories whose house was attacked by unidentified persons throwing explosive bombs that damaged their house and vehicles by and by the Palestinian security services, who threatened to kill Alaa Al-Rimawi, Al-Jazeera correspondent , as well as threatening the journalist Faten Alwan, the journalist Naela Khalil, Iyad Hammad, Jihad Barakat and Faris Al-Sarafandi.
Also, (25) cases of prevention from coverage were monitored, including insults, cursing and spitting on the faces of journalists, and (3) cases of summoning, detention, investigation and accusation of treason were recorded. ) A case of a house raid by the PA security forces on journalist Tariq Al-Sarkji in an attempt to arrest him.
In the Gaza Strip, (2) cases of postponement of a trial session of journalist Ihab Fasfus, accused of “misuse of technology,” were recorded to study the file and issue a ruling.
