PJPC: Settler attack on Palestinian journalists gross violation of international law & Geneva conventions
In a statement reviewed by the Yemen News Agency (SABA), the center stressed that “targeting journalists constitutes a blatant violation of international humanitarian law and the relevant protocols of the Geneva Conventions, which guarantee the protection of journalists during conflicts and consider them civilians who must not be harmed.”
The center described the attack as “the latest in a series of assaults targeting media crews working in the occupied Palestinian territories, amid continued international silence.”
The PJPC clarified that the injured journalists are Ranin Sawafita, Muhammad Al-Atrash, Louay Said, Nael Boitel, and Nasser Ishtiya, noting that they were brutally beaten with stones and sticks by settlers while performing their journalistic duties.
The center confirmed that the attack is part of a series of systematic assaults carried out by Zionist settler groups against Palestinian journalists in the occupied West Bank, aimed at intimidating them and preventing them from documenting Israeli violations against farmers and civilians.
It added that international silence on the crimes of the Israeli occupation and its settlers has encouraged the escalation of attacks against media crews, calling for urgent intervention by the United Nations and the Human Rights Council to ensure the protection of journalists and hold the perpetrators accountable.
The PJPC also urged international organizations concerned with press freedom, such as the International Federation of Journalists and Reporters Without Borders, to launch an international investigation into the incident and ensure that the perpetrators do not escape justice.
The center further called for the deployment of international monitoring missions to the occupied West Bank to follow up on repeated violations against journalists and to guarantee the freedom of media work free from intimidation and attacks.