Anadolu holds ‘Witnessing Genocide’ workshop

By Mehmet Sah Yilmaz

A workshop titled "Witnessing Genocide" focusing on journalism in conflict zones was held Thursday at Anadolu’s headquarters in the Turkish capital Ankara.

Anadolu correspondents shared first-hand accounts of the ongoing Israel-Palestine war at the event, which was held as part of the Cinema Workshop organized by Anadolu's News Academy.

Chief Correspondent Mustafa Deveci, who followed Israel's attacks on Gaza at the border, along with photojournalist Mustafa Hassona and cameraman Muhammad Al-Alul, who covered events from within Gaza, shared their experiences.

The event was moderated by Anadolu’s Foreign and Economy News Publishing Director Bariskan Unal.

Alul, a freelance cameraman for Anadolu, who lost four children and three siblings in the attack by Israel on Nov. 5, recounted his experiences with tears in his eyes.

Alul said he lived with his family in the Maghazi refugee camp in the central part of Gaza and learned about the attack on his home while he was on duty in Khan Yunis in the south.

Alul said that he found out about the attack nearly 1-1.5 hours later due to communication problems, and because it was nighttime, he could not go from Khan Yunis to his home.

"It was only in the morning that we could go to the place where my house was hit. When we went to the Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, there were suddenly hundreds of bodies in front of me. There were so many martyrs that we tried to uncover the face of each one to find out which one might be my child," Alul recalled.

"In the end, I could only find the bodies of my four children. Four of my siblings were martyred, and I could see all of them. We found the bodies of our friends and neighbors as well," he said.

-‘Aggression of Israeli army has no limits’

Anadolu photojournalist Hassona said that since 2012, Israel has launched five wars against Gaza, but the one that started in October is very different and more aggressive than the others.

Hassona said that after the start of the war, they faced serious difficulties in finding a safe place for their family and children, as well as obtaining food and water.

"As a journalist, I can say professionally that you are facing the Israeli army, and there is no limit to their aggression. it causes serious anxiety," he said.

"In fact, many of our friends were targeted. The gravity of this situation is increasing. You can be a target at any moment. Therefore, practicing journalism there was really a big problem, it was very difficult," he recalled.

Deveci, for his part, said that immediately after the Oct. 7 events, they moved to the region with Anadolu’s Middle East News Director Turgut Alp Boyraz and cameraman Metin Yuksel.

Describing his two-month duty in the region, Deveci said that the Israeli army allowed shooting their activities on the Gaza border in the early days, but later it became impossible.

Deveci said that the Israeli army invited specific press organizations to its tours in the border region, adding that there was "discrimination" among journalists.

During the event, excerpts from the film "Welcome to Sarajevo," addressing the problems journalists face in war zones, were also shown.

Anadolu’s Cinema Workshops will continue to be held twice a month at AAtolye with different themes.

*Writing by Zehra Nur Duz