Journalists killed in Gaza, legitimization of the French media

Journalists killed in Gaza, legitimization of the French media

By Sarra Grira, OrientXXI, 14 August 2025

Anas al-Sharif was 28. He was married, with two children – a little girl, Sham, who was known to everyone who followed him on social media because he was so crazy about her; and Salah, his little boy. Anas is dead. The al-Jazeera reporter, who became the channel’s chief correspondent in Gaza after Wael al-Dahdouh was evacuated, was deliberately killed by the Israeli army on Sunday, 10 August 2025. Four of his colleagues—Mohammed Qreiqaa, Ibrahim Zahir, Moamen Aaliwa, and their driver Mohammed Noufal—as well as another freelance journalist, Mohammed al-Khaldi, also died in the Israeli bombing of the journalists’ tent located next to al-Shifa Hospital.

This information should have been front-page news on Monday morning in all French newspapers and broadcast media. Along with the standing reminder that should precede every television news program and every article : Israel is barring journalists from around the world from entering Gaza and it is killing our colleagues on the ground there who are enabling us to know what is happening.

But that is the theory.

Israel’s narrative finds its place

“A ’terrorist’ says Israel, an ’assassination’ according to the Qatari channel.” Playing it down the middle. This is how these murders are reported in France’s leading morning news program (France Inter). The same story is repeated on France Info. In France2’s 8pm bulletin, the microphone is handed straight to Olivier Rafowicz, the spokesperson for the Israeli army. One year and ten months after the start of the genocidal war against Gaza, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu facing an international arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) and trials under way against Israeli soldiers with dual nationality in their second country, the Israeli narrative still has its place in the French media. And the solidarity of a profession known for its corporatism stops at the Arab borders of the Middle East.

The grim tally has become absurd and almost unreal: since April, there has been talk of “more than 200 journalists killed.” So many names have been added to the list since then. With the war in Gaza, Israel has been able to move from denial to assertion. Not so long ago, when its army targeted and killed journalists, Tel Aviv was content to wash its hands of the matter, feign incomprehension, and then, finally, promise to open an investigation. This is what happened when anotheral-Jazeera correspondent, Shirin Abu Akleh, was killed.

And the strategy has proven successful: it allows Palestinian accusations to be dismissed as hysterical and “without proof,” then, when the facts are too obvious, it can be claimed that an investigation has been launched—long enough for everyone to forget about the matter. However, in Gaza, and especially since October 8, 2023, Israel has claimed responsibility for these assassinations. All it takes is to assert—as it has done in the case of hospitals, schools, universities, and thousands of children killed—that there is a link with Hamas. As Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham points out on his Twitter account :

“After October 7, a group called the “legitimization cell” was set up within Israeli military intelligence (Aman). It was composed of intelligence agents tasked with finding information that would give “legitimacy” to the army’s actions in Gaza—Hamas’s failed attacks, use of human shields, exploitation of the civilian population. This cell’s main mission was to find Gazan journalists who could be presented in the media as Hamas members in disguise.”

Threatened by the Israeli army

And it works. Just hours after his assassination, photos of Anas al-Sharif— specially a selfie taken with Hamas leaders, including Yahya Sinwar— began circulating on social media. In a WhatsApp group of dozens of journalists, mainly French, the photos were shared: “Have you seen these pictures ? What do you think ?” The images are relayed in a completely neutral manner. No assertions are made, only questions are asked. The sacrosanct “journalistic objectivity” is respected. The aim is simply to understand, to get as close to the truth as possible. Yet many correspondents in the Middle East keep photos of themselves with a “dictator” or a “terrorist” of whom they are not proud. A few months ago, we even saw a French journalist, Laurence Ferrari, smiling and posing with a war criminal wanted by international justice: Benjamin Netanyahu.

Anas al-Sharif knew he was in danger. Before he was killed, he had been threatened more than once, his home bombed, and his father killed in December 2023. On 24 July 2025, Israeli army spokesman Avichay Adraee posted a video on social media accusing him directly of being a member of the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, based on “documents found in Gaza.” The journalist denounced these accusations and asked his colleagues around the world to relay his message. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) sounded the alarm 1. Anas al-Sharif also repeatedly stated that he was not affiliated with any political organization. While his entire profession and all his compatriots are being targeted by a genocidal war, he still had to prove his innocence. But that was not enough.

No innocents in Gaza

The problem with the way many French journalists are covering the death of Anas Al-Sharif is not that they want to know more about him. The problem is the subtext : Ultimately, Anas Al-Sharif may not have been completely innocent. From there, his fate can be left to the discretion of the Israeli army. And to all those who believe that there are no innocent people in Gaza.

Translated from French by Martine Bulard and Jim Muir.

Disclaimer

Opinions expressed in this article remain those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of CEMAS Board.

UN expert Reem Alsalem says Israel targeting Palestinian women and girls in Gaza

'Femi-genocide': UN expert Reem Alsalem says Israel targeting Palestinian women and girls in Gaza

By Stefano Nanni, The New Arab, 20 August 2025

LONDON, 22 August. - (ANA) - The New Arab Meets: UN expert Reem Alsalem, who says Israel is using gender-based violence as a genocidal tool against Palestinian women and girls in Gaza.

By 9 July 2025, women and girls accounted for 67% of the 57,680 Palestinians the UN estimated had been killed in Israel’s ongoing genocide. Some experts believe this figure is a significant underrepresentation, particularly as the number of deaths continues to rise.

As for the women and girls who are still alive, Gaza’s destroyed health infrastructure means around 150,000 pregnant and lactating women lack essential care, while approximately 17,000 women and 60,000 children under five suffer from acute malnutrition amid a famine caused by Israeli forces blocking aid.

In addition, 50,000 children have reportedly been killed or injured since October 2023, causing unspeakable trauma for their mothers.

Without a doubt, these figures are disturbing, but for UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women and Girls Reem Alsalem, they cannot be ignored.

That is why, in her latest report titled Sex-based Violence Against Women and Girls: New Frontiers and Emerging Issues, Reem has reinforced the accusation of genocide against Israel under international law.

“What is happening to Palestinian women and girls is the intentional destruction of their existence and bodies, for being Palestinian and for being women,” she notes, making clear that reproductive violence is being used as a genocidal tool by Israel in Gaza.

Ultimately, for Reem, the horrors in Gaza amount to what she calls a 'femi-genocide' carried out by Israel, which she elaborates on further in her report. The New Arab spoke with her to explore its implications and findings.

The New Arab: How did you reach the conclusions in your report?

Reem: It is important to note that I first stated, in November 2023, that reproductive violence was being used as a genocidal tool. I had already pointed out my belief that the acts committed by Israel constituted genocidal acts within the meaning of Article 2(d) of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, “imposing measures to prevent births within the group.”

Israel has deliberately targeted and killed mothers and dismantled Gaza’s healthcare system. Beyond targeting doctors, the bombing of the only fertility clinic in Gaza was a symbolic representation of this violence. We saw many couples who had waited years to have a child, only for that child to be killed along with their chance of having others.

The lack of fuel meant incubators could not function, and throughout this genocide, Palestinian medical staff were ordered by the IDF to abandon and leave behind newborn infants. Many of them slowly starved to death.

Despite states ignoring international law, you continue to invoke it — and now you introduce a new legal term, ‘femi-genocide’. Why?

Many international legal experts agree: what we are witnessing in Gaza is depravity, cruelty, and sadism on an unprecedented scale.

The current legal framework and concepts do not fully capture the scale, the patterns, or the intentionality, and many experts and international lawyers have struggled to apply existing terminology to these unprecedented crimes.

What is clear, however, is that every act committed by Israel was geared towards serving the overall objective of destroying the Palestinian people and ethnically cleansing Gaza (and other Palestinian-occupied land).

That is why terms such as “every sector was subjected to partial or total destruction” are used.

For example, ecocide — describing environmental destruction through toxic weapons — and domicide — the intended erasure of homes — are emerging.

Others speak of scholasticide, for the elimination of schools, and even legicide, the collapse of international law due to Israel’s impunity.

With that in mind, and given the deliberate targeting of Palestinian women and girls, I used the term femi-genocide.

The violence against Palestinian women and girls is so extreme that existing concepts fall short.

Argentine anthropologist Rita Laura Segato first coined the term to describe systematic violence against women rooted in patriarchal, racial, and colonial power structures.

This was intentional and can be inferred from the repeated and continuous dehumanising and vilifying speech that Israeli leadership and representatives of Israeli society directed specifically at Palestinian women and children.

Can these new terms help ensure accountability and justice?

As I said, one of the consequences of the genocide in Gaza, and the fact that it has been allowed to continue, is that it has eroded the credibility of international law and the rules-based order.

If the world cannot stop a genocide that is live-streamed on our screens day in and day out, and cannot end the aggressor’s impunity, what hope do victims have in other parts of the world?

The credibility of governments and other actors that claim to care about human rights, including women’s rights, has also suffered a severe blow. People everywhere have been able to see through the double and triple standards.

What is happening in Gaza is a test case for humanity. As in the past, Israel is experimenting with new, powerful, and sophisticated tools and crimes.

Despite pressure from people and societies on their governments, unfortunately, it is not yet enough to stop the genocide.

Governments periodically condemn the violence and express their horror, but they have not yet broken the siege, sent a protection force to Gaza, or imposed large-scale sanctions on Israel.

They have not done everything they can to bring those responsible for massive human rights violations to justice.

What has been your interaction with the State of Israel in preparing this report, and more broadly, during your mandate?

Right after October 7, I asked both Palestine and Israel to facilitate a visit to examine the reported crimes committed on and since that date against all women, whether Palestinian, Israeli, or other nationals.

The State of Palestine immediately welcomed my request, while the State of Israel has never responded.

As you know, visiting the Palestinian territories and meeting with stakeholders and victims requires Israel’s permission, which has not been granted.

After October 7, I also reached out to Israeli civil society to find anyone willing to speak with me about the Hamas-led attack on that day.

One NGO, Physicians for Human Rights, sent a report based on secondary sources, mainly the Israeli government, which was later retracted.

I also attempted to contact a former Israeli captive who had shared her experience publicly, but I didn’t receive a response.

Thus, I have not been able to say more than what I and other fellow mandate holders have stated, namely that we condemn all acts of violence, including sexual violence and abuse, committed against anyone on and since October 7.

If I have spoken in more detail about the systematic violence, including sexual violence against Palestinian women and girls, it is because over the past months I have received credible information from victims or their representatives — information I have been able to verify and act upon, including by seeking clarifications from Israel regarding the reports and allegations.

Colleagues and the Commission of Inquiry on the oPt have also documented cases of appalling sexual violence and torture against Palestinian men.

Mandate holders can only act when they receive information from a wide range of reliable sources. They cannot rely solely on media sources, especially when those sources themselves depend on government information that cannot be independently verified.

Nevertheless, my colleagues and I have consistently advocated for impartial and independent investigations into all reported crimes. For this to happen, all parties, particularly Israel as the occupying power, must allow independent investigators access and fully cooperate with independent investigations.

I hold no inherent bias against Israelis. I have worked with Israeli women and civil society organisations and reflected their input in thematic reports on issues such as child custody, prostitution, and surrogacy.

Yet, pro-Israel lobbies have sought to portray me as biased due to my identity. I recognise that anyone who has expressed concern over Israel’s conduct, within or outside the UN, is often accused of antisemitism or bias.

Why are other states not doing more to stop Israel, and, after your colleague Francesca Albanese was sanctioned by the US, do you fear any repercussions?

A number of special rapporteurs and independent experts have experienced increasing harassment, bullying, and pressure for their work and positions — myself included, for a range of positions I have adopted over the past four years.

Besides the extremely worrying situation concerning the Special Rapporteur on the oPt, the US Congress last year discussed a bill to abolish the position of Special Rapporteur on Coercive Measures.

Recently, we have also seen the resignation of three members of the Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel, which occurred shortly after the sanctions on the Special Rapporteur on the oPt.

I believe that states, the Human Rights Council, and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights could and should have done more to defend our independence in the years preceding these sanctions, and could have taken stronger, firmer stands sooner.

The writing was on the wall, and we should, or could, have seen this coming. There were already alarming incidents of attacks and defamation.

As for why states are not doing more, the recent report of the Special Rapporteur on the oPt shows that too many economic interests are at stake.

The media also bears responsibility. They amplified falsehoods about October 7 that were perpetuated by Israel and repeated by its allies, serving to justify the collective punishment inflicted on Palestinians and the unspeakable crimes they were subjected to.

If governments are feeling any pressure now, it is thanks to the relentless efforts of citizens mobilising worldwide, particularly outside of the Arab world.

Author

Stefano Nanni is a freelance writer with a background in the aid sector. Based in Amman, he has lived in Iraq, Lebanon, and Jordan for the past 12 years. He is also the author of a book about the Iraqi poet Latif Al Saadi

Disclaimer

The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author’s and not those of EUobserver or CEMAS Board.

Gaza: Israel threatens to ban major aid organisations as starvation deepens

Gaza: Israel threatens to ban major aid organisations as starvation deepens

LONDON, 16 August. - (ANA) - 100 organizations call for an end to Israel’s weaponization of aid

Despite claims by Israeli authorities that there is no limit on humanitarian aid entering Gaza, most major international NGOs have been unable to deliver a single truck of lifesaving supplies since 2 March.

Instead of clearing the growing backlog of goods, Israeli authorities have rejected requests from dozens of NGOs to bring in lifesaving goods, citing that these organisations are “not authorized to deliver aid.” In July alone, over 60 requests were denied under this justification.

This obstruction has left millions of dollars’ worth of food, medicine, water, and shelter items stranded in warehouses across Jordan and Egypt, while Palestinians are being starved.

“Anera has over $7 million worth of lifesaving supplies ready to enter Gaza – including 744 tons of rice, enough for six million meals, blocked in Ashdod just kilometers away,” said Sean Carroll, President and CEO of Anera.

Many of the NGOs now told they are not “authorized” to deliver aid have worked in Gaza for decades, are trusted by communities and experienced in delivering aid safely. Their exclusion has left hospitals without basic supplies, children, people with disabilities, and older people dying from hunger and preventable illnesses, and aid workers themselves going to work hungry.

The obstruction is tied to new INGO registration rules introduced in March. Under these new rules, registration can be denied on the basis of vague and politicized criteria, such as alleged “delegitimization” of the state of Israel. INGOs warned the process was designed to control independent organisations, silence advocacy, and censor humanitarian reporting. This new bureaucratic obstruction is inconsistent with established international law as it entrenches Israel’s control and annexation of the occupied Palestinian territory.

Unless INGOs submit to the full registration requirements, including the mandatory submission of details of private donors, complete Palestinian staff lists and other sensitive information about personnel for so-called “security” vetting to Israeli authorities, many could be forced to halt operations in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and remove all international staff within 60 days. Some organisations have even been issued a seven-day ultimatum to provide Palestinian staff lists.

NGOs have made clear that sharing such data is unlawful (including under relevant data protection laws), unsafe, and incompatible with humanitarian principles. In the deadliest context for aid workers worldwide, where 98 percent of those humanitarians killed were Palestinian, NGOs have no guarantees that handing over such information would not put staff at further risk, or be used to advance the government of Israel's stated military and political aims.

Today, INGOs’ fears have proven true: the registration system is now being used to further block aid and deny food and medicine in the midst of the worst-case scenario of famine.

“Since the full siege was imposed on 2 March, CARE has not been able to deliver any of our $1.5 million worth of pre-positioned supplies into Gaza,” said Jolien Veldwijk, Country Director of CARE. “This includes critical shipments of food parcels, medical supplies, hygiene kits, dignity kits, and maternal and infant care items. Our mandate is to save lives, but due to the registration restrictions civilians are being left without the food, medicine, and protection they urgently need.”

“Oxfam has over $2.5 million worth of goods that have been rejected from entering Gaza by Israel, especially WASH and hygiene items as well as food,” said Bushra Khalidi, Oxfam Policy Lead. “This registration process signals to INGOs that their ability to operate may come at the cost of their independence and ability to speak out.”

These restrictions are part of a broader strategy that includes the so-called “GHF” scheme – a militarized distribution mechanism promoted as a humanitarian solution. In reality, it is a deadly tool of control, with at least 859 Palestinians killed around “GHF” sites since it began operating.

“The militarized food distribution scheme has weaponized starvation and curated suffering. Distributions at GHF sites have resulted in extreme levels of violence and killings, primarily of young Palestinian men, but also of women and children, who have gone to the sites in the hope of receiving food,” according to Aitor Zabalgogeazkoa, MSF emergency coordinator in Gaza.

Both the “GHF” scheme and the INGO registration process aim to block impartial aid, exclude Palestinian actors, and replace trusted humanitarian organisations with mechanisms that serve political and military objectives. They come as the government of Israel to escalate its military offensive and deepen its occupation in Gaza, making clear these measures are part of a broader strategy to entrench control and erase Palestinian presence.

“At this point, everyone knows what the correct, humane answer is, and it's not a floating pier, airdrops or the “GHF.” The answer, to save lives, save humanity and save yourselves from complicity in engineered mass starvation, is to open all the borders, at all hours, to the thousands of trucks, millions of meals and medical supplies, ready and waiting nearby,” said Sean Carroll of Anera.

We call on all states and donors to:

- Press Israel to end the weaponization of aid, including through bureaucratic obstruction, such as the INGO registration procedures.

- Insist that INGOs are not forced to share sensitive personal information, in violation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), or compromise staff safety or independence as a condition for delivering aid.

- Demand the immediate and unconditional opening of all land crossings and conditions for the delivery of lifesaving humanitarian aid.

Editor’s Note

- The occupied Palestinian territory is the deadliest setting for aid workers worldwide, with Palestinian staff accounting for 98% of aid worker fatalities: 509 out of 517 killings that took place between 2023-2025, according to the Aid Worker Security Database.

- On 6 May, 55 organisations warned that Israel’s new INGO registration measures are a grave threat to humanitarian operations and international law.

- On 1 July, 200+ organisations called for immediate action to end the deadly Israeli distribution scheme, including the so-called “GHF” in Gaza, revert to the existing UN-led coordination mechanisms, and lift the Israeli government’s blockade on aid and commercial supplies.

- On 23 July, 100+ organisations warned that, as mass starvation spreads across Gaza, our colleagues and those we serve are wasting away.

- On 29 July, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) wrote that the worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out in the Gaza Strip.

- Israel has consistently denied restricting the amount of aid allowed into Gaza, including throughout the period of July 2025, when most of the denials discussed in this statement were issued.

- On 31 July, OHCHR wrote that since 27 May, at least 1,373 Palestinians have been killed while seeking food; 859 in the vicinity of the “GHF” sites and 514 along the routes of food convoys. Most of these killings were committed by the Israeli forces.

- On 4 August, a Palestinian nurse in Gaza was killed when an airdrop struck him.

- On 5 August, it was reported that Israeli authorities are planning for the full occupation of the Gaza Strip.

- On 6 August, UN agencies and NGOs warned that without immediate action most international NGO partners could be de-registered by Israel in coming weeks.

- On 6 August, the Dutch Data Protection Authority (DPA) concluded that Israel’s information requests under the INGO registration process risk violating the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The DPA advised that INGOs should not comply with these requests, and that the only solution is for Israel to amend its requirements and for the relevant ministries to issue a formal protest.

- On 7 August, MSF released a report stating food distributions in Gaza run by the so-called "GHF" are sites of “orchestrated killing and dehumanization” that must be shut down."

- On 10 August, Save the Children reported the deaths of 100 children due to starvation in Gaza since October 2023.

- On 12 August, a group of UN Special Rapporteurs on human rights published a letter to the Israeli government, stating deep concern that the INGO registration measures “weaken the ability of INGOs to operate independently and impartially and to carry out their humanitarian and human rights work without interference or fear of reprisal” and that “that the obligation to report on INGO personnel, in the context of occupation, armed conflict and serious violations of international law, could raise serious protection and reprisal concerns.”

Signatories:

Action Against Hunger (ACF)
​​A New Policy
ACT Alliance
Action For Humanity
ActionAid Denmark
ActionAid International
All We Can
Alliance Sud
American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)
Americares
Anera
Asamblea de Cooperación por la Paz
Bystanders No More
Campaign Against Arms Trade
Canadian Foodgrains Bank
CARE
Caritas Internationalis
Caritas Jerusalem
Caritas Middle East and North Africa
Caritas Switzerland
Center for Jewish Nonviolence
Charity & Security Network
Children Not Numbers
Christian Aid
Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP)
CISS - Cooperazione Internazionale Sud Sud
Committee to Protect Journalists
Cooperation Canada
COORDINADORA VALENCIANA ONGD
DanChurchAid
Danish Refugee Council (DRC)
Department of Service to the Palestinian Refugees
Diakonia
Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe
EDUCO
Embrace the Middle East
Emergency - Life Support for Civilian War Victims Ong Ets
Entreculturas
Forum Ziviler Friedensdienst e.V. (Pro Peace)
Frieda - the Feminist Peace Organization
Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL)
Fund for Global Human Rights
Glia
HEKS/EPER (Swiss Church Aid)
HelpAge International
Humanitarian Coalition
Humanity Auxilium
Humanity & Inclusion – Handicap International
Humanity First UK
INARA
Insecurity Insight
International Development and Relief Foundation (IDRF)
INTERSOS
Islamic Relief
Jahalin Solidarity
Japan International Volunteer Center (JVC)
Jüdische Stimme für Demokratie und Gerechtigkeit in Israel/Palästina JVJP Switzerland
KinderUSA
Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation
La Coordinadora de Organizaciones para el Desarrollo (The Spanish Development NGO Platform)
Médecins du Monde International Network
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)
MedGlobal
Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP)
medico international
medico international schweiz
Mennonite Central Committee (MCC)
Middle East Children’s Alliance
MPower Change Action Fund
Muslim Aid
NORWAC – Norwegian Aid Committee
Norwegian Church Aid
Norwegian People's Aid (NPA)
Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC)
Oxfam
Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund (PCRF)
PANZMA - Palestinian Australian New Zealand Medical Association
PARCIC
Pax Christi International
PAX for Peace
Peace Watch Switzerland
People in Need (PIN)
Plan International
Polish Humanitarian Action (PAH)
Portuguese Platform of Development NGOs
Premiere Urgence Internationale (PUI)
Project HOPE
Relief International
Right to Play
Sabeel-Kairos UK
Saferworld
Save the Children International
Secours Islamique France (SIF)
Solidar Suisse
Solidarités International
SWISSAID
Terre des Hommes Italy
Terre des Hommes Lausanne
The Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network (EMPHNET)
The United Church of Canada
United Against Inhumanity (UAI)
Vento di Terra
War Child Alliance
Weltfriedensdienst e.V.