Foreign Press Association petitions Israel Supreme Court to allow journalists into Gaza

The Foreign Press Association (FPA) in Jerusalem has filed a petition with Israel’s Supreme Court for immediate access for international media and journalists into Gaza, as occupation forces continue to insist that all reporters need a military escort within the besieged enclave.

Since the beginning of Israel’s bombardment of Gaza and then its ground invasion, the occupation and its Egyptian counterparts have restricted journalists from entering the enclave and reporting on the developments there, leaving local Palestinians or previously-embedded journalists as the only ones able to report first-hand from there.

Only foreign journalists who Israeli occupation forces allowed to accompany them have been allowed into Gaza. The FPA called these policies “limited access” and stated that it did not allow “access to areas where soldiers are not present.” The statement asserted that “freedom of the press is a basic civil right in a democratic society. We also believe it is in the public interest to get a fuller picture of conditions inside Gaza after 10 weeks of extremely limited and highly controlled access.”

“We are aware of the unique security challenges posed by the current war, and any members entering Gaza would have to take these risks into account,” the statement said. “But the Israeli government’s recent agreement to allow aid to enter Gaza directly from Israel shows that such obstacles can be overcome.”

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