National Writers Union statement on assassinations of Palestinian journalists

The following National Writers Union Statement on the assassinations of Al Jazeera journalist Ismail al-Ghoul and photographer Rami al-Rifi was issued Aug. 2 by Elena Novak.

In solidarity with our sibling union the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate (PJS), and in the strongest possible terms, the National Writers Union (NWU) condemns the assassinations of our comrades Al Jazeera correspondent Ismail al-Ghoul and photographer Rami al-Rifi on July 31, 2024. The pair were killed in an Israeli strike while covering events in al-Shati Refugee Camp in Gaza City.

The ongoing violence against journalists, with at least 157 killed so far according to PJS, not only threatens our colleagues who are providing essential coverage of the reality in the Middle East. It also represents the extreme end of a spectrum of retaliation faced by media workers around the world for coverage or speech that is critical of Israel. We urge all journalistic outlets and their unions, along with nonprofits dedicated to free speech, to denounce these gruesome assassinations.

Israel’s war on Gaza has been the deadliest for journalists in modern history. These killings are a blatant violation of the international law that is meant to protect journalists and ensure our freedom of work and the public’s right to know.

At least 39,400 Palestinians have been killed — and likely tens of thousands more — in the genocide in Gaza, including children, disabled and aging individuals. Adding deaths from starvation and disease, themselves the product of Israeli policy, the total toll could exceed 186,000, according to an estimate published in “The Lancet” [medical journal] in July 2024. As Israel appears poised for further escalation, this time to a regional war, it is journalists — our colleagues — who are in the crosshairs, answering the call to report on this violence and designated as targets by an unscrupulous military bent on covering up its crimes.

As a U.S.-based union, we have a duty to highlight that these continuing violations of international law would not be possible without billions of dollars in U.S.-supplied weapons and the support of U.S. political leaders in both parties, as reaffirmed by last week’s meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. NWU joins seven major U.S. unions and a growing movement of workers around the world to demand that our government stop arming Israel now.