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The senators urged for the extortion of journalists successful Gaza and planetary media entree to the territory.
Published On 21 Aug 2025
A radical of 17 US senators has written to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, condemning an Israeli onslaught past week that killed respective Al Jazeera journalists, and urging the US to unit Israel to assistance overseas media entree to Gaza and support journalists there.
The missive [pdf] published connected Wednesday was led by Hawaii Senator Brian Schatz and signed by 16 different senators, including Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, a registered autarkic who caucuses with the Democrats.
It comes a week aft an Israeli onslaught killed respective Palestinian journalists successful the besieged territory, including Al Jazeera correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqeh, and Al Jazeera cameramen Ibrahim Zaher and Mohammed Noufal.
The onslaught was met with international outcry and brought the fig of journalists killed by Israel successful Gaza since October 7, 2023, to 238, according to the Gaza Government Media Office.
“Israel has not provided convincing grounds for its assertion that al-Sharif was a Hamas militant,” the senators wrote. “Absent a compelling mentation of the subject nonsubjective for this attack, it appears Israel is publically admitting to targeting and sidesplitting journalists who person shown the satellite the standard of suffering successful Gaza, which would beryllium a usurpation of planetary law.”
The radical urged President Donald Trump’s medication to supply much accusation astir the State Department’s “awareness and analysis” of the strike.
State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce told reporters past week that the section discussed al-Sharif’s sidesplitting with Israel, and reiterated Israel’s unverified assertion that helium whitethorn person had ties to Hamas, the Palestinian radical that governs Gaza.
Al Jazeera has accused Israeli authorities of fabricating evidence to nexus its unit to Hamas, and denounced Israel’s subject for waging a “campaign of incitement” against its journalists successful the Gaza Strip, including al-Sharif.
The senators called for the US to “make it wide to Israel that banning and censoring media organizations and targeting oregon threatening members of the property is unacceptable and indispensable stop.”
“We impulse you to property the Israeli authorities to support journalists successful Gaza and let planetary media to entree the territory.”
The senators’ missive besides called for unrestricted and contiguous entree for overseas journalists to screen Israel’s ongoing battle connected Gaza.
While Palestinian journalists successful Gaza screen Israel’s devastating war, Israel has barred planetary journalists from entering the Strip.
The missive besides voiced interest for Israel’s attacks connected property state elsewhere. The radical condemned the killings of journalists successful Lebanon, Israel’s crackdown connected journalists and media outlets successful the occupied West Bank, harassment by Israeli soldiers of journalists successful confederate Syria, and the ineligible threats and censorship faced by Israeli journalists and media organisations.
The Washington Post connected Wednesday nighttime besides reported that a subordinate of the property bureau for the US State Department’s Bureau of Near East Affairs, Shahed Ghoreishi, was fired aft suggesting Washington connection condolences for the journalists killed successful Gaza.
Source:
Al Jazeera and quality agencies
English (US) ·