Israel continues to deny foreign reporters access to the Gaza Strip despite a \u2018ceasefire\u2019 being in place.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Published On 30 Apr 2026<\/span>30 Apr 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n A joint letter by the executives of the world\u2019s top media organisations has called on Israel to allow foreign journalists to enter and report from Gaza independently.<\/p>\n \u201cBeing on the ground is essential. It allows journalists to question official accounts on all sides, to speak directly with civilians and report back what they witness firsthand,\u201d the top editors of more than two dozen media companies, including the BBC, CNN, Reuters and The Associated Press, said on Thursday.<\/p>\n list of 3 items<\/span>end of list<\/span><\/section>\n \u201cFreedom of the press is a basic value in any open society. It is time for the delays to end. Let us into Gaza,\u201d they added.<\/p>\n The Israeli government has so far not responded to their request to discuss the situation.<\/p>\n The ban on the entry of foreign media professionals into Gaza has been in place since Israel\u2019s genocidal war on Gaza began on October 7, 2023.<\/p>\n Initially, Israel said the ban was necessary because foreign journalists allowed into Gaza could give away the positions of Israeli soldiers on the ground and endanger them.<\/p>\n Other rationales have included that, as an active battle zone, it was too dangerous. The army has occasionally brought foreign reporters in on highly controlled trips, but media outlets have not been granted independent access.<\/p>\n Currently, \u201cthe heaviest fighting is over and there is a ceasefire in place\u201d, the editors\u2019 statement said.<\/p>\n \u201cJournalists do not pose a threat to Israeli troops. There is a mechanism in place \u2013 however restrictive \u2013 that allows aid workers to enter and exit the territory. Why not journalists?\u201d<\/p>\n In 2024, the Foreign Press Association filed a petition for independent access to Gaza to the Israeli Supreme Court but has yet to receive a verdict.<\/p>\n Several news channels have repeatedly expressed concern about the wellbeing of their Palestinian colleagues, who have been alone in covering the war while also experiencing it personally.<\/p>\n \u201cThey should not have to shoulder this burden alone, and they should be protected,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n Since October 2023, more than 200 journalists and media workers have been killed, according to a tally from the Committee to Protect Journalists organisation, far more than in conflicts elsewhere, like Russia\u2019s war on Ukraine.<\/p>\n The Gaza Government Media Office says at least 262 journalists have been killed in Israeli attacks since the start of the war.<\/p>\n Earlier this month, Al Jazeera journalist Mohammed Wishah was killed in an Israeli drone attack while travelling in a car on al-Rashid Street, the coastal road that runs west of Gaza City.<\/p>\n Following his death, the network issued a statement, saying the killing reflected \u201ca continued systematic policy of targeting journalists and silencing the voice of truth\u201d.<\/p>\n Wishah was the 12th Al Jazeera journalist or media worker in Gaza to have been killed by Israeli forces since the start of the war.<\/p>\n The others are Samer Abudaqa, Hamza al-Dahdouh, Ismail al-Ghoul, Ahmed al-Louh, Rami al-Rifi, Anas al-Sharif, Ibrahim al-Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, Muhammad Qreiqeh, Muhammad Salama and Hussam Shabat.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Israel continues to deny foreign reporters access to the Gaza Strip despite a \u2018ceasefire\u2019 being in place. Published On 30 Apr 202630 Apr 2026 A joint letter by the executives of the world\u2019s top media organisations has called on Israel to allow foreign journalists to enter and report from Gaza independently. \u201cBeing on the ground […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21009,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21008","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-middle-east-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21008","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=21008"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21008\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/21009"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=21008"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=21008"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=21008"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![](\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/2017-06-08T131939Z_1189275883_RC11B0FE7F20_RTRMADP_3_GULF-QATAR-JAZEERA-1714943623.jpg?resize=96%2C96&quality=80)
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nRecommended Stories <\/h2>\n
More than 200 Palestinian journalists killed<\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"