Alaqad asserts that mainstream news organizations selectively present information to their audiences, implying that the absence of journalists reporting from the field leads to the forfeiture of vital facets of reality. She elaborates, “When individuals are muzzled and suppressed, lacking a forum for articulation or a venue to convey unfolding events, and without the opportunity for us to perceive what’s transpiring from their perspective, our comprehension will inevitably face constraints.”
During any calamity, the faltering of dialogue inevitably leads to the vanishing of responsibility, making wrongdoing more readily overlooked. Alaqad remarks, “Injustice is exceedingly vocal,” adding, “Justice must be more resonant.”
Singled Out
Reporters, too, face permanent incapacitation. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) reported in December 2025 that 67 media professionals perished that year, with 43 percent of these fatalities occurring in Gaza at the hands of Israeli military personnel. The cumulative count of journalists killed in Gaza since October 7, 2023, has exceeded 220, as per the RSF. The United Nations’ own figure stands at over 260.
Dagher states, “Considering the context of an entry prohibition for international media into Gaza, now over two years into the conflict, coupled with the curtailment of journalists’ unimpeded transit both within and into Gaza, and given the unparalleled slaughter of journalists, the deliberate attacks on journalistic bureaus and assaults on telecommunication networks merely constitute another component of a strategy designed to enforce an information void.” Israel has consistently refuted allegations that it intentionally targets journalists or media infrastructure.
“Eliminating reporters,” Alaqad asserts, “is synonymous with suppressing factual accounts.” She observes that this tactic operates on various fronts: it not only results in a reduction of on-site coverage but also portrays journalists as perilous figures to the populace. She further explains, “This also conveys a warning to the public that all journalists pose a danger; do not engage with them, and avoid contact with them.”
She remembers her mother imploring her not to don her journalistic attire. While intended to denote impartiality and safeguard reporters on assignment, these items, conversely, rendered her a perceived mark. She clarifies, “It is meant to offer protection, but instead, it actively endangers your existence and even that of your loved ones and those surrounding you.”
Alaqad notes that the situation was not perpetually so. Initially, individuals would welcome journalists, provide them with sustenance, and express gratitude for their efforts. She states, “After a few months, once they had witnessed reporters being singled out, Palestinians began altering their interactions with the press.”
Conducting journalistic work in Gaza meant operating within an environment where the very notion of time was precarious and unpredictable. Future arrangements seldom stretched past dusk. Discussions ceased suddenly. Locations transformed into tributes within a single day. Alaqad declares, “The sole assurance in Gaza is unpredictability.”
She remembers conversing with households, intending to revisit them the subsequent day, only to discover that the individuals she had engaged had perished due to aerial assaults.
She has since departed Gaza, and is now undertaking postgraduate studies in communication sciences at the American University of Beirut. She was awarded the Shireen Abu Akleh Memorial Endowed Scholarship, commemorating the Palestinian journalist slain by Israeli military personnel in May 2022.
Online Realities
Achieving widespread digital circulation on social media enabled her to connect with audiences, yet simultaneously exposed her to peril. She states, “It revealed the unfolding events in Gaza to countless individuals globally, but at what price? Residing in Gaza could result in the loss of your life, particularly for a reporter.”
Notwithstanding the broad scope of online journalism, she doubts its lasting nature. Profiles vanish, entries are deleted, and footage becomes inaccessible. Content that is presently accessible might be absent subsequently.
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