Map of West Bank and Gaza

Particularly since the outbreak of the second Intifada (“Uprising” or “Shaking Off”), in late 2000, the West Bank and Gaza have been a dangerous and unpredictable place for journalists. Restrictions on movement and speech, harassment from hostile populations, and targeted, even lethal violence confront media workers from all sides.

Israeli authorities are criticized by press freedom advocates for a variety of reasons. Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) restrict the movement of journalists, and have barred them from areas where they are engaged in active combat. They have also destroyed broadcast media operated by the Palestinian authority and arrested Palestinian journalists on charges of terrorism. Israeli authorities may also refuse to renew journalist credentials, particularly for Palestinians that Israel considers to be security risks. Most important, however, are the shootings of journalists who are either caught in the crossfire of conflict zones, or, critics say, hit by indiscriminate or even intentional gunfire or artillery from IDF soldiers. Three such deaths occurred last year, many more have been wounded, and Israeli soldiers are rarely punished for these casualties.

For their part, the Palestinians have also imposed limits on and shown aggression toward journalists. Official Palestinian broadcast media are government-run propaganda outlets, and Palestinian militias and armed groups have raided and ransacked news offices. Armed Palestinians have threatened and assaulted journalists who report critically of the Palestinian Authority and its officials, and have warned Israeli journalists to stay out of Palestinian areas. The Palestinian Authority has also passed laws criminalizing the publication of “secret information” or other material considered harmful to the national unity. And, finally, there are the threats to media from Palestinian and Israeli populations themselves. Both Jewish settlers and militant Palestinians have assaulted journalists and confiscated photographic film, footage, and other materials, particularly when journalists are perceived as likely to portray them in unsympathetic ways. Western news organizations, many of which rely on Palestinian journalists, have denounced these and other actions on both sides.