Abandoned by Western peers, Palestinian journalists remain committed to reporting on the genocide
Placards in memory of journalists killed in Gaza are visible during a public commemoration organized by the Order of Journalists of Lazio and Articolo 21 on Sept. 9, 2025. Credit: Photo by Vincenzo Nuzzolese/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Palestinian journalists around the world say the Israeli military’s targeting of journalists in Gaza—and Western media’s silence—has led them to think differently about their colleagues and their roles within the industry
The world has failed Palestinian journalists in Gaza.
In the past two years, Israel has killed more than 278 media workers in Gaza. There has yet to be any accountability for the martyrdom of our peers and their families. Since I began writing this article in August, almost every week, a journalist that I followed since the beginning of this genocide has been killed by Israel in the most horrific ways imaginable. The grief is unbearable. I have often wondered: Where is the outrage? In what universe is it normal to be calm and measured and “objective” about the killings of people whose only job was to document the truth? How are these war crimes going unchecked? How many more prewritten wills do we have to read before Western journalists acknowledge our rage?
As a Palestinian reporter watching the genocide unfold from the U.S., I have never felt so ashamed of the journalism industry. For solace and to help make sense of the roles that we can play in the media, I sought advice from other Palestinian journalists on the ground and in the diaspora. I wanted to hear how they are coping with the failures of our supposed colleagues and their insight into how they are managing during these unprecedented and traumatic times.
“One of the martyrs”
“I’ll be honest with you. It’s very dark to say this, but it wasn’t a shock,” said Mohammad Alsaafin, a journalist at Al Jazeera’s AJ+, about the August killing of his colleague Anas Al-Sharif.
Weeks after Al-Sharif’s death, Alsaafin is finding strength in the words and actions of his martyred colleagues at Al Jazeera. He read Al-Sharif’s will and could not believe what a “remarkable young man” he was. The 28-year-old characterized being a journalist not as a job, but as a mission and a calling. Al-Sharif appeared to believe very strongly that he had a role to play in showing the world what was happening to Palestinian people and what was happening to Gaza, the place he loved.
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Read the full article on Prism Reports.
