Open Letter
Mondoweiss / October 23, 2022
Palestinian and Arab journalists express solidarity with Palestinian journalists who have been targeted by Zionist watchdog organizations, in an effort to censor their writings bringing attention to the Palestinian struggle for liberation. Shatha Hammad is the most recent journalist to be targeted by the watchdog group, Honest Reporting.
Editor’s Note: The following open letter from Palestinian and Arab journalists was published in October, 2022. Mondoweiss occasionally publishes press releases and statements from organizations in an effort to draw attention to overlooked issues.
On October 18, the Thomson Reuters foundation withdrew the Kurt Schork award from Palestinian journalist Shatha Hammad, who is based in the occupied West Bank, following an incitement campaign against her.
Earlier this month, The New York Times dismissed two Palestinian photographers from the besieged Gaza Strip for similar reasons, and others before them in the BBC and Deutsche Welle.
These developments come within a series of targeted attacks on Palestinian journalists working in international organizations, by Zionist lobby groups specialized in surveilling and persecuting Palestinians over what they write and publish.
Such institutions, which operate similarly to Israeli intelligence agencies, aim to discredit Palestinians and prevent them from highlighting Israeli oppression in Palestine. Their strategies are clear: they dig deep into journalists’ social media accounts, chasing after any expressions, statements, or even jokes said in childhood, taking them out of context and weaponizing them. What matters to these institutions is to continue to suffocate what remains of the air not contaminated by their bullets.
They incite against journalists, including for their use of everyday words that form an essential part of the Palestinian and Arab lexicon such as “martyr” and “resistance,” often directly targeting Palestinian national identity and history.
It is known that such meticulous standards do not apply to Israeli journalists. Rather, such attacks are intended to further diminish the credibility of the underdogs in this fight. That is why international institutions like Reuters quickly bend to Zionist pressure, while turning a blind eye to Israeli journalists’ questionable or hateful statements, conflict of interest, and, most importantly, their past or present personal involvement in the material violence committed against Palestinians.
We must end these targeted civil assassinations by standing together and refusing any kind of blackmail. The issue here is not to defend or contextualize specific sentences or expressions. We refuse to be trapped in these kinds of investigations that distract, through fallacies of debate, from the material violence of the Israeli regime.
We stand against oppressive scrutiny, and against the institutions that bolster the silencing of Palestinian journalists. We stand with the journalist Shatha who is known for her professionalism, and our other colleagues who were pursued and persecuted by Zionist institutions.
Accordingly, the journalists below sign on the statement above.
- Ahmad Melhem
- Rasha Hirzallah
- Aziza Nofal
- Zena Tahhan
- Mohammad al-Kurd
- Muna al-Kurd
- Ghada Oueiss
- Najwan Simri
- Hosam Salem
- Rami Samara
- Jehad Barakat
- Tareq Khamis
- Mervat Sadeq
- Rama Yousef
- Hanadi Qawasmi
- Jumana Ghanem
- Muthanna Khamis
- Aya Obali
- Mohammad Muna
- Hafez Abu Sabra
- Mohammad Alwan
- Akram al-Natsheh
- Mohammad Masalmah
- Abdulraheem al-Qawsini
- Qutayba Hamdan
- Raneen Judeh
- Aqeel Awawdeh
- Mohammad Ahmad Awawdah
- Amjad Qawasmi
- Mustafa Badr
- Lina Abu Halaweh
- Hisham Abu Shaqrah
- Muath Amarneh
- Mujahed al-Saadi
- Mohammad Ateeq
- Mohammad Awad
- Awad al-Rjoub
- Shadi Jararah
- Suleiman Bsharat
- Bakr Daraghmeh
- Mohammad al-Shobaki
- Omar al-Amour
- Mohammad Abu Zaid
- Abdulrahman Awad
- Sari Jaradat
- Naseer Thabit
- Shatha Hanaysha
- Ameer Abu Aram
- Hamza Affaneh
- Yasmeen Kalboneh
- Buthaina Hamdan
- Tasneem Hassan
- Sumoud Saadat
- Diaa Ali
- Deeb Hourani
- Sa’ed Hawari
- Khaled Budair
- Christine Rinawi
- Najd Alawi
- Nagham Issa
- Mohammad Alawi
- Musab Qafisha
- Yousef Abu Watfa
- Muayyad Tanineh
- Hadi Sabarneh
- Ragheed Tabisa
- Mohammad Abed
- Mohammad Ghafri
- Abdelafou Bassam
- Ahmad Yousef
- Oday Jaa’ar
- Aqeel Awawdeh
- Firas al-Taweel
- Sujoud Assi
- Ibrahim al-Rantisi
- Mahmoud Matar
- Bilal Irman
- Mahmoud Hreibat
- Ahmad Khatib
- Fadi Arouri
- Amany Sarahneh
- Hind Shraydeh
- Firas Tanineh
- Ali Obaidat
- Raneen Joudeh
- Qutayba Hamdan
- Ikhlas Abu Ruz
- Ayman Qawareeq
- Hala Hassoun
- Mujahed Mardawi
- Muntaser Nassar
- May Abu Hassanein
- Abdelmohsen Shalaldeh
- Hazem Badr
- Summayya Jawabreh
- Raed al-Sharif
- Najlaa Zaitoun
- Jad Qaddoumi
- Sa’ed Nijm
- Muna Qandeel
- Rula Hassanein
- Islam Amarneh
- Naela Khalil
- Tareq Yousif
- Mohammad al-Atrash
- George Qanawati
- Ansar Tmaizah
- Khaldoon Barghouti
- Suzanne al-Awiwi
- Saeed Abu Maala
- Hisham Abdullah
- Fayhaa Shalash
- Mujahed Bani Mifleh
- Jihan Awad
- Bayan al-Jobe
- Sulaiman Bsharat
- Amal al-Naimi
- Issam al-Rimawi
- Loay al-Saeed
- Ameen Abu Wardeh
- Huthaifa Srour
- Abdelkareem al-Alami
- Fadi Madi
- Saida Zaareer
- Nidaa Basyoumi
- Nasser Shyoukhi
- Hatem Hamdan
- Nour Khatib
- Ibtihal Mansour
- Khaldoon Mathloom
- Saja Nasrallah
- Sara al-Rifai
- Mutasem Saqf al-Hait
- Fadi al-Jarjawi
- Anas al-Rantisi
- Majed Saeed
- Hamad Taqatqa
- Halima Khawalda
- Mustafa Khawaja
- Ayman Rabay’a
- Samer Khweira
- Mohammad al-Sayeh
- Laith J’aar
- Sami al-Sai
- Bisan al Kharouf
- Hala Khalayleh
- Reem Abu Laban
- Ayman Nubani
- Bassam Abu al-Rob
- Fatima Ibrahim
- Shurouq Talab
- Nour Aqtash
- Rozana Taha
- Rima Farasini
- Sayyaf Zarra
- Saher Hawari
- Jaafar Sadaqah
- Raneen Abahreh
- Ahmad Srour
- Iyad Jadallah
- Yasmeen al-Azraq
- Aseel Duzdar
- Abeer Dahbour
- Naqaa Hamed
- Mohammad Abu Alya
- Tareq al-Sharif
- Marwan Jawabreh
- Mahmoud Skandar
- Diala al-Rimawi
- Lubna al-Ashqar
- Riham Maqadma
- Alaa al-Din Abed
- Sulaiman Abu Srour
- Raghda Etma
- Khaled Sabarneh
- Iyad Hamad
- Hamza Salaymeh
- Anan Ajjawi
- Maysaa Rimawi
- Tuqa Ashraf
- Hana Elaiwa
- Malek Samara
- Abdelghani Samara
- Radi Karama
- Miral al-Dajani
- Mufeed Abu Hasna
- Malek al-Rujoub
- Islam al-Ashqar
- Nader al-Ghoul
- Ahmad Jarghoun
- Inas al-Haj Ali
- Samer Sharif
- Saeed Majed
- Dalia Hijab
- Nadeen al-Saifi
- Diana al-Mughrabi
- Sandy Suleiman
- Samah Arar
- Ameed Shehadeh
- Salam Abu Sharar
- Reem al-Omari
- Siwar Abed Rabbo
- Mohammad Abdelazeez Najjar
- Abdullah Bahsh
- Najah Musallam
- Rama Amriyeh
- Ashraf Kutkut
- Maysam Barghouti
- Ahmad Shalash
- Tania Karajeh
- Mohammad Nofal
- Ahmad Maher
- Salah al-Din Abu Hassan
- Ahmad Nasr al-Ali
- Latifa Abdellatif
- Mohammad Khairy
- Myassar Abu Khalil
- Rana Khmous
- Salah al-Din Abu Hassan
- Rand Khdeir
- Israa Obaid
- Nisreen Awwad
- Nader Dagher
- Nisreen Silmi
- Bakr Abu Rujailah
- Sabreen Obaidat
- Mohammad Hussein
- Manal Dweikat
- Salsabeel Talahmeh
- Rania Shaqdam
- Erica Zeidan
- Saleh Masharqa
- Muntaser Hamdan
- Yara Fares
- Atta Awad
- Aya Abu Eid
- Ahmad Darawsheh
- Khuloud Lafi
- Baraa Lafi
- Shatha Hammad
- Mohammad Torkman
- Kareem Khamayseh
- Raneen Addasi
- Zakariya Hammad
- Nour el-din Banat
- Fadia Salah al-Din
- Nijmah Hijazi
- Salam Hindawi
- Yousif al-Faqeeh
- Malak Khaled
- Loreen Zaidaty
- Radwan Qatanani
- Lubaba Thuqan
- Ikhlas Yousif
- Fadwa al-Basha
- Samer al-Zaaneen
- Saja al-Alami
- Juman Abu Arafeh
- Ahmad al-Arouri
- Ghaydaa Hammoudeh
- Shurouq Asaad
- Haitham al-Omari
- Khaled al-Faqih
- Osama Nasrallah
- Hazem Nasser
- Bahaa Ghaith
- Wihaj Bani Mifleh
- Rawan Farhat
- Omran Zakarneh
- Shafee al-Hafeth
- Ruba Mahdawi
- Rawan Ziadeh
- Amr Manasra
- Ruba al-Najjar
- Mahmoud Abdat
- Mohammad Jaber
- Raed Abubakr
- Muhannad Ayesh
- Waleed Zayid
- Ni’ma Adawiya
- Muthaffar Ateeq
- Maram Humaid
- Hind al-Khoudary
- Sami al-Shami
- Muna Khadr
- Mariam Barghouti
- Jalal Abukhater
- Rawaa Auge
- Rushdi Sarraj
- Hassan Islaih
- Ahmad Deeb
- Rami Sharafi
- Haneen Harara
- Fadi Hanouna
- Bilal Khaled
- Amneh Khandaqji
- Shireen Khalifa
- Fadi Abu Saada
- Asmaa Hreish
- Saleh al-Masri
- Marah al-Wadei
- Anas Abu Dayyeh
- Qassam al-Maadi
- Khaled Kraizim
