Brussels - Saba:
Journalists and representatives of media institutions and international organizations participated in a solidarity vigil in Brussels, Belgium, on Tuesday evening, in front of the European Union headquarters, in support of Palestinian journalists, especially those working in the Gaza Strip.
Participants in the vigil raised Palestinian flags and pictures of several journalists killed while covering the aggression on Gaza. They also held banners demanding an immediate end to the targeting of journalists and the urgent need for European and international action to protect them and guarantee freedom of journalism in the occupied Palestinian territories.
"What we are witnessing today is the worst phase in the history of journalism, with more than 210 journalists killed by the Israeli army, amid shameful international silence," IFJ Secretary General Antonio Bellanger told Quds Press. He added, "We issue a clear appeal from here: Stop these massacres, stop the genocide, let journalists report the truth, and allow us and our colleagues from around the world to enter the Gaza Strip."
Bellange directed sharp criticism at European governments, asking, "We do not understand why these governments are silent, and why they do not act to stop the massacres being committed in full view of the world. What is being slaughtered in Gaza is our humanity as a whole."
The Secretary-General pointed out that the targeting of journalists is not separate from the targeting of civilians, including children, women, and medical and humanitarian personnel, calling for real action to hold those responsible for crimes against media professionals accountable.
In this context, Bellanger, on behalf of the International Federation of Journalists, which represents more than 600,000 journalists worldwide, called for "the need to hold the leaders of the occupation responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity accountable before international courts, in accordance with the Charter of International and Humanitarian Law."
For her part, Dominique Pradali, President of the International Federation of Journalists, said: "Journalism is being slaughtered in Palestine, and we are here to say: Enough. Freedom of expression is not a local issue, but a global one that requires effective international solidarity."
Pradali revealed a new initiative led by the Federation, in cooperation with international legal experts, aimed at drafting a binding international convention to protect journalists, given the current absence of an international legal framework to protect them.
The proposed convention aims to end impunity by establishing an independent international commission of inquiry to investigate the killing of journalists and hold accountable those who carried out and issued the orders.
The International Federation of Journalists called on global media outlets and governments to support this convention, in preparation for its submission to the United Nations for formal adoption, warning that "the absence of protection mechanisms simply means there may be no journalists in the future."
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