Hamas has condemned Israel’s systematic targeting of Palestinian journalists, accusing it of suppressing voices that expose its crimes in Gaza. Since October 2023, over 200 journalists have been killed, and many others arbitrarily arrested or forcibly disappeared. Hamas urges international legal bodies to act against Israeli violations of press freedom.

Hamas has strongly condemned Israel’s ongoing aggression against Palestinian journalists, describing it as a systematic effort to silence voices that expose the regime’s crimes in Gaza.

As the world observes World Press Freedom Day on May 3, Palestinian media workers continue to face deadly attacks by Israeli forces.

In a statement released on Saturday, Hamas accused Israel of deliberately targeting journalists to suppress the truth about its actions against the Palestinian people. The group asserted that Israel’s continued crimes against Palestinian media reflect its deep fear of the press’s ability to reveal its atrocities and aggression.

“The freedom of journalists to convey our people's suffering to the world and expose the crimes of the occupation is a right guaranteed by all international conventions,” Hamas stated. However, it accused Israel of flagrantly violating this right with complete impunity.

Since the Israeli regime launched its war on Gaza in October 2023, at least 212 Palestinian journalists have been killed, according to Hamas. Additionally, more than 177 journalists have been arbitrarily arrested, with at least 49 currently imprisoned in Israeli jails.

The statement further alleged that dozens of Gaza-based journalists have been forcibly disappeared, enduring extreme torture, abuse, starvation, and medical neglect.

Hamas called on international human rights and legal organizations to take action, resist external pressures, criminalize Israel’s violations against Palestinian journalists, and demand the immediate release of all detained media workers.

A joint statement from the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS), the Commission of Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners, and Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association reported that Israel has killed more than 200 journalists and kidnapped around 180 others over the past 18 months. The statement confirmed that 49 journalists remain imprisoned.

The organizations accused Israel of escalating its assassination operations against journalists in an unprecedented manner since October 7, 2023. They emphasized that the targeting of Palestinian journalists has long been a central policy of the occupation.

Ajith Sunghay, representative of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, stated that Gaza is one of the deadliest places in the world for journalists, reinforcing concerns about the dangers faced by media workers in the region.