SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Hundreds of Palestinians attended the funeral of journalist Ahmed Abu Hussein, who was killed by Israeli forces while covering a protest at the Gaza border. (Photo: @MohammadMusle18/Twitter)
Hundreds Mourn 'Despicable' Killing by Israeli Forces of Gaza Journalist Covering Border Protest
Ahmed Abu Hussein is the second journalist killed by Israeli troops since a wave of demonstrations began on March 30
Apr 26, 2018
Hundreds of Palestinian mourners on Thursday attended the funeral of 24-year-old Gaza journalist Ahmed Abu Hussein, who was killed by an Israeli military sniper while reporting on a protest at the Gaza border.
Hussein, a photographer for Gaza's Voice of the People radio station, was the second journalist to be killed by Israeli forces since a wave of protests known as the "March of Great Return" began on March 30. Thousands of people have been injured, and at least 40 protesters have been killed.
According to the Associated Press, amateur footage showed that Hussein was wearing a vest and helmet marked "TV" to identify himself as a journalist, when he was shot.
"Protective gear that clearly indicates individuals are members of the press should afford them extra protection--not make them targets," Sherif Mansour, Middle East and North Africa program coordinator for the Committee to Protect Journalists, told Al Jazeera. "The death of Ahmed Abu Hussein underscores the need for Israeli authorities to urgently scrutinize its policies toward journalists covering protests and take immediate, effective action."
The head of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) gave troops instructions to use force during the protests, which began on the 42nd anniversary of Land Day, marking the deaths of six Palestinian protesters who were killed by Israeli soldiers while protesting settlements.
The organizers of the protests have urged participants to demonstrate peacefully.
Human rights groups have denounced Israel's violent response to the protests.
"We express our outrage over these shootings that may have resulted in unlawful killings and the incomprehensibly high number of injuries sustained," said several U.N. human rights experts in a statement last week. "No evidence has emerged showing that such a situation occurred during the demonstrations that would make the lethal force used legal. The freedoms of association, assembly, and expression are all fundamental rights under international human rights law. These rights are to be given broad protection, and can only be restricted in narrow and exceptional circumstances. Israel must fully observe these rights, and ensure that their approaches to crowd control and demonstrations are in strict accordance with international law."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Hundreds of Palestinian mourners on Thursday attended the funeral of 24-year-old Gaza journalist Ahmed Abu Hussein, who was killed by an Israeli military sniper while reporting on a protest at the Gaza border.
Hussein, a photographer for Gaza's Voice of the People radio station, was the second journalist to be killed by Israeli forces since a wave of protests known as the "March of Great Return" began on March 30. Thousands of people have been injured, and at least 40 protesters have been killed.
According to the Associated Press, amateur footage showed that Hussein was wearing a vest and helmet marked "TV" to identify himself as a journalist, when he was shot.
"Protective gear that clearly indicates individuals are members of the press should afford them extra protection--not make them targets," Sherif Mansour, Middle East and North Africa program coordinator for the Committee to Protect Journalists, told Al Jazeera. "The death of Ahmed Abu Hussein underscores the need for Israeli authorities to urgently scrutinize its policies toward journalists covering protests and take immediate, effective action."
The head of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) gave troops instructions to use force during the protests, which began on the 42nd anniversary of Land Day, marking the deaths of six Palestinian protesters who were killed by Israeli soldiers while protesting settlements.
The organizers of the protests have urged participants to demonstrate peacefully.
Human rights groups have denounced Israel's violent response to the protests.
"We express our outrage over these shootings that may have resulted in unlawful killings and the incomprehensibly high number of injuries sustained," said several U.N. human rights experts in a statement last week. "No evidence has emerged showing that such a situation occurred during the demonstrations that would make the lethal force used legal. The freedoms of association, assembly, and expression are all fundamental rights under international human rights law. These rights are to be given broad protection, and can only be restricted in narrow and exceptional circumstances. Israel must fully observe these rights, and ensure that their approaches to crowd control and demonstrations are in strict accordance with international law."
Hundreds of Palestinian mourners on Thursday attended the funeral of 24-year-old Gaza journalist Ahmed Abu Hussein, who was killed by an Israeli military sniper while reporting on a protest at the Gaza border.
Hussein, a photographer for Gaza's Voice of the People radio station, was the second journalist to be killed by Israeli forces since a wave of protests known as the "March of Great Return" began on March 30. Thousands of people have been injured, and at least 40 protesters have been killed.
According to the Associated Press, amateur footage showed that Hussein was wearing a vest and helmet marked "TV" to identify himself as a journalist, when he was shot.
"Protective gear that clearly indicates individuals are members of the press should afford them extra protection--not make them targets," Sherif Mansour, Middle East and North Africa program coordinator for the Committee to Protect Journalists, told Al Jazeera. "The death of Ahmed Abu Hussein underscores the need for Israeli authorities to urgently scrutinize its policies toward journalists covering protests and take immediate, effective action."
The head of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) gave troops instructions to use force during the protests, which began on the 42nd anniversary of Land Day, marking the deaths of six Palestinian protesters who were killed by Israeli soldiers while protesting settlements.
The organizers of the protests have urged participants to demonstrate peacefully.
Human rights groups have denounced Israel's violent response to the protests.
"We express our outrage over these shootings that may have resulted in unlawful killings and the incomprehensibly high number of injuries sustained," said several U.N. human rights experts in a statement last week. "No evidence has emerged showing that such a situation occurred during the demonstrations that would make the lethal force used legal. The freedoms of association, assembly, and expression are all fundamental rights under international human rights law. These rights are to be given broad protection, and can only be restricted in narrow and exceptional circumstances. Israel must fully observe these rights, and ensure that their approaches to crowd control and demonstrations are in strict accordance with international law."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.