The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has threatened to take legal action against Israeli officials if reporters working in Gaza are targeted by the military.
In an open letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant published Saturday, the IFJ said around 10% of journalists working in Gaza had been killed during the Israel-Hamas war.
“Such has been the mortality rate among news gatherers — around three times that of health workers, for example — that it is impossible to believe that this is a matter of chance,” the letter said.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a separate non-profit that promotes press freedom, said on Sunday that 83 journalists and media workers had been killed since the war began on October 7. Of those, 76 were Palestinians, four Israeli and three Lebanese.
The IFJ’s letter called on Israel to publish specific policies and procedures to ensure that military personnel would protect journalists.
The Israeli military has previously said it never intentionally targets journalists.
