UNRWA: Gaza Tops Global List for Deadly Attacks on Press, Aid Workers

By Staff, Agencies

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency [UNRWA] Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini warned that Gaza has become the most dangerous place in the world for journalists and humanitarian workers as "Israel’s" war on the besieged territory intensifies.

In a post on X, Lazzarini hailed Palestinian journalists as “our eyes and ears,” saying they worked “heroically and against all odds,” as he noted that more than 230 journalists and many humanitarian workers have been killed since the aggression on Gaza began.

Lazzarini condemned the ongoing ban on international journalists entering Gaza independently, calling it “a serious blow to media freedom and transparency” and stressing that such access is “fundamental to media freedom.”

The UN official warned that restricting media access fuels disinformation campaigns and polarized narratives. He stressed that it undermines the credibility of firsthand reports, including those provided by international humanitarian organizations.

He also accused the ban of contributing to the dehumanization of Palestinians, by attempting to suppress direct accounts from those enduring the aggression.

“The ban on international journalists has lasted too long. Lifting it is overdue,” Lazzarini stated, urging for immediate action to restore independent reporting and ensure accountability for what is happening on the ground in Gaza.

At least 40 Palestinian journalists are currently held in "Israeli" prisons, including two from Gaza, Nidal al-Wahidi and Haitham Abdul Wahid, whose whereabouts remain unknown, as ASRA Media Office condemned "Israeli" occupation forces [IOF] for intensifying repression to silence Palestinian media.

Moreover, since October 2023, IOF have killed over 270 Palestinian media workers, including 44 inside displacement tents, many sheltering near hospitals or UN facilities, as part of a systematic campaign targeting Gaza’s journalists and media infrastructure, according to the Freedoms Committee of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate.