Nearly five months after a joint statement by 29 MFC member states called on Israel to allow press immediate independent access to Gaza and to protect journalists on the ground, the complete ban on media access remains in force.
The ban has persisted since the start of the war over two years ago, despite the ceasefire plan that went into effect on 10 October 2025.
In a letter addressed to the foreign ministers of MFC member states — which includes the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Canada and France — RSF and CPJ have urged these governments to:
- Send official representatives to attend the January 26 hearing before Israel’s Supreme Court concerning the second petition filed by the Foreign Press Association (FPA) seeking unrestricted independent access into Gaza for journalists;
- Make press freedom a priority in discussions with the new technocratic government — appointed under the US President’s plan to govern Gaza and led by Ali Shaath — beginning with the immediate lifting of the media blockade; and
- Ensure that the International Stabilisation Force (ISF) applies UN Security Council Resolution 2222, which recognises journalists as civilians in times of conflict and guarantees both their protection and foreign media access to Gaza.
Independent access ‘fundamental’
“Independent access to conflict zones is a fundamental principle of war reporting,” said RSF’s director-general Thibaut Bruttin.
“The foreign press has been able to cover many recent high-intensity conflicts, from Iraq to Afghanistan to Ukraine.
Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz
