Thursday , 17 October 2024
Members and supporters of political parties have recently escalated their attacks on local and foreign media crews covering developments in the Lebanese regions targeted by the Israeli offensive. These violations have taken various forms, including shooting on the VTM NEWS crew from Belgium, physical assaults, direct threats, and the unlawful detention and interrogation of journalists and photographers. In several cases, party members handed detained media professionals over to security services, who then launched investigations and decided to question the journalists rather than hold the perpetrators of illegal acts of detention and assault accountable.
The violations also involved non-state actors confiscating journalistic equipment, searching cameras and personal phones during press coverage, and subjecting journalists to incitement campaigns. These campaigns often accused media professionals of collaborating with the enemy, leading to a rise in violence against journalists on the ground.
The Samir Kassir Foundation reminds all parties that journalists play a crucial role in reporting facts and ensuring that the voices of citizens are heard, especially amid the ongoing war of aggression. However, targeting and intimidating them severely undermines their ability to fulfill this mission, with some now avoiding certain areas to escape confrontations with party members and supporters who act with impunity.
More alarmingly, many journalists who have been attacked are refraining from documenting or reporting the assaults due to fear of retaliation, whether through renewed physical violence or being barred from covering events in areas controlled by these parties.