Dying for the Truth
Read about the appalling threats journalists face in conflicts from Gaza to Ukraine.
Also see
Dying for the Truth
Despite overwhelming international condemnation, Israel continues to try to maintain an information vacuum in Gaza.
Ukraine: Laying Viktoria to Rest
Family, friends and colleagues pay tribute to uncompromising reporter killed in Russian detention.
The Courage to Tell Dangerous Truths
It is more urgent than ever to support free and robust reporting.
Gaza: “Everyone Has a Family in Danger”
How local journalists cover the story amid intense physical and mental peril for themselves - and their loved ones.
Israel’s Media Blindness Over Gaza
Why there’s such a gap between what Israelis and the rest of the world see on their TV screens and social media feeds.
Welcome to IWPR’s Frontline Update, your go-to source to hear from journalists and local voices at the front lines of conflict.
THE BIG PICTURE
The killing this week of Al Jazeera Gaza correspondent Anas al-Sharif along with five colleagues has once again highlighted the extreme risks faced by local journalists in war zones.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, nearly 200 reporters have been killed in the Gaza conflict.
VOICES FROM THE FRONTLINE
“Despite overwhelming international condemnation, Israel continues to use an attempted information vacuum to prosecute its war – denying international media entry to Gaza and undermining the legitimacy of Palestinian voices,” wrote IWPR Executive Director Anthony Borden this week following al-Sharif’s targeted killing.
“Anas gave Palestinians a voice that they trust, telling them what was happening in their neighbourhoods, in their streets, in the hospitals... and a sense of connection if they've left,” Taghreed El-Khodary, a freelance journalist and former New York Times Gaza correspondent, told Borden.
The impact of targeting local journalists on the confidence and resilience of their communities can not be underestimated.
Also this week, IWPR Ukraine Country Director Maryna Bezkorovaina wrote movingly of attending the funeral of Viktoriia Roshchyna, the 27-year-old reporter killed in Russian captivity as she attempted to investigate illegal detention centres.
“Viktoria’s funeral made me realise that her torturers – and those of many others – want to not only silence the truth but also terrify Ukrainians into submission with the gravity of their crimes,” Bezkorovaina wrote. “But I will not allow them to win this cognitive battle, one of the many they are running alongside the conventional battlefield.”
WHY IT MATTERS
Local journalists in war zones represent their own communities. That is their special value, but also their risk.
As they navigate the considerable risks of active conflict and also try to keep their loved ones safe, they all too often find themselves fighting for the legitimacy of their own voices.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Platforming, protecting and promoting grassroots reporting has been core to IWPR’s mission since we began work amid the Balkan wars of the 1990s.
Journalists and civil society not only play a vital role in documenting war and ensuring accountability. Conflict resolution and sustainable peace is an impossible prospect without their contributions – representing communities, building confidence, holding to account.
Local voices must be respected and allowed to bear witness wherever they are.
