UN chief says journalists killings in Gaza 'unacceptable,' urging for protection of press

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) - The UN secretary-general on Friday said the killings of journalists since the Gaza war began are "unacceptable," urging for the protection of the press.

Antonio Guterres' remarks came in a message read at the opening of the UN International Media Seminar on Peace in the Middle East 2024 in Geneva.

Noting that this seminar is being held under "profoundly difficult circumstances" as the war in Gaza marked one-year last month while the violation spread to Lebanon, Guterres said: "At the same time, the situation in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, continues to deteriorate with Israeli military operations, construction of settlements ... , intensification of settler attacks that progressively undermines any possibility of a two-state solution."

"Journalists in Gaza have been killed at a level unseen in any conflict," he said, and lamented: "The ongoing ban preventing international journalists from Gaza suffocates the truth even further."

He did not forget to mention several of those who have also been killed or injured, covering key stories impacting the occupied West Bank.

"This is unacceptable," he underscored. "The voices of journalists must be protected and press freedom must be safeguarded."

He reiterated his call to end the war and the occupation.

He said: "It is high time for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and Lebanon with the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, the effective delivery of humanitarian aid, and irreversible progress to a two-state solution."

According to the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate, 173 journalists have been killed while covering the war since Oct. 7, 2023.

Israel has continued a devastating offensive on Gaza since an attack last year by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.

More than 43,200 people have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 101,600 others injured, according to local health authorities.

Israel faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its actions in Gaza.