WASHINGTON, May 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- U.S. press leaders
called for Israel to stop
attacking buildings that house journalists in Gaza after an Israeli missile destroyed the
al-Jalaa building, which housed offices of the Associated Press, al
Jazeera and other news organizations.
Israeli officials said they struck the al-Jalaa building because
Hamas used part of it.
But Saturday's strike was the latest in a series of
Israeli military attacks on facilities where journalists have been
working to bring to the world the story of the ongoing
conflict.
On May 11 and May 12, Israeli warplanes bombed two other
buildings that housed more than a dozen international and local
media outlets.
National Press Club President Lisa
Nicole Matthews and National Press Club Journalism Institute
President Angela Greiling Keane
issued the following statement:
"The Israeli airstrike on an office tower in Gaza Saturday is part of a pattern this week
of Israeli forces destroying buildings in Gaza that house media organizations. After
Israeli forces provided warning of the attacks, journalists and
other civilians were able to escape death. But, as AP President and
CEO Gary Pruitt put it, AP
journalists and freelancers saw their equipment destroyed and
'narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life.'"
This trend prompts the question of whether Israeli forces are
attacking these facilities to impair independent and accurate
coverage of the conflict.
We call upon Israeli authorities to halt strikes on facilities
known to house press.
Reliable media organizations are the best sources of accurate
information about events in Gaza,
and they must not be prevented from doing their vital job."
Founded in 1908, the National Press Club is the
world's leading professional organization for
journalists. The Club has 3,000 members representing nearly every
major news organization and is a leading voice for press freedom in
the United States and around the
world.
The National Press Club Journalism Institute, the
Club's non-profit affiliate, promotes an engaged
global citizenry through an independent and free press and equips
journalists with skills and standards to inform the public in ways
that inspire civic engagement.
Contact: John Donnelly, NPC Press
Freedom Team Chairman: jdonnelly@cq.com, 202 650 6738
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SOURCE National Press Club