Italian press slams 'Israel' over Gaza blackout, demands prompt access

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: News websites
Today 12:58

Italian journalist unions call the targeting of media in Gaza, where nearly 300 reporters have been killed, a war crime and are urging EU intervention.

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Protesters hold placards and flags during a demonstration held by the London Freelance branch of the National Union of Journalists to honor journalists killed in Gaza, opposite Downing Street in London, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025 (AP)

Italian press unions and media organizations are urging the Italian government and the European Union to push "Israel" to grant immediate, unrestricted access for foreign journalists to enter the Gaza Strip. The appeal was made on Wednesday during a joint press conference at the Foreign Press Association in Rome, where representatives warned that the continued media blackout is obstructing global understanding of the situation on the ground.

The event brought together leaders from the National Federation of Italian Press (FNSI), the National Council of the Order of Journalists (ODG), and the Justice and Peace in the Middle East group. They called on Rome and Brussels to intervene to lift the blockade preventing international reporters from reaching Gaza, and to end Israeli restrictions on press activity in the occupied West Bank and the eastern part of occupied al-Quds.

Gianni Giovannetti of the Justice and Peace in the Middle East group highlighted the scale of the crisis, noting that nearly 300 journalists have been killed in Gaza since the start of "Israel’s" genocide on October 7, 2023. “We believe that killing journalists means killing the truth,” he said, stressing that access to Gaza is an essential component of safeguarding the public’s right to information.

FNSI Secretary General Alessandra Costante underscored the need for independent reporting to corroborate the work of Palestinian journalists who have been documenting the war at great personal risk. Their deaths, she said, place an even greater responsibility on foreign media to bear witness.

Palestinian journalist warns of rising press attacks since ceasefire began

In a video message delivered during the conference, Palestinian journalist Al-Hassan Selmi described a sharp rise in attacks on members of the press since the ceasefire began on October 10. “The strategy has changed with the ceasefire. They now target journalists gathered in one place. More journalists have been killed since the ceasefire began,” he warned.

The Italian unions’ appeal follows new findings from Palestinian media rights groups. Earlier this week, a local organization reported that 44 journalists were killed in displacement tents, part of a broader toll of more than 270 media workers killed since "Israel" launched its genocide on Gaza in October 2023.

A separate report from the Freedoms Committee of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate detailed direct attacks on journalists’ tents near hospitals and UN-run shelters, including sniper fire and shelling of displacement zones. It also documented the destruction of media offices and the killing of journalists in their homes, as well as those who died in makeshift shelters after being forcibly displaced.

The report emphasized that targeting civilian journalists constitutes a war crime under Article 79 of the First Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions.