Ms Amelia Evans:

This briefing could not be more critical. It comes during what is the deadliest period for journalists since print journalists began gathering data on this issue in 1992. The Committee to Protect Journalists, CPJ, has documented at least 108 journalists and media workers who have been killed in the Israel-Gaza war since it began on 7 October 2023. Of these, 103 were Palestinian. We have evidence that three of these deaths were the result of Israel Defense Forces targeting journalists, which would amount to a clear violation of international humanitarian law. There are ten other cases of suspected targeting that require further investigation, which is being made difficult by the conditions of war. We have also documented 51 cases of journalist arrests, as well as multiple assaults, threats, cyberattacks, censorship and the killing of family members. The scale and impunity around these abuses are terrifying and risk creating a grave new precedent around the treatment of journalists in conflict.

Risks to reporting are not just confined to Gaza. At least 15 journalists have been killed since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, including Irish cameraman Pierre Zakrzewski. Active conflicts in Myanmar, Sudan and Ethiopia have also led to recent deaths or detention of journalists this year, to name just a few.

There are also alarming practices and precedents developing across the issue of access. Since 7 October, international media have been completely prohibited from crossing into Gaza - despite over 2,000 international journalists seeking accreditation – with just a handful of exceptions where a military escort was provided the entire time. This has put tremendous pressure on the Gazan journalists left struggling to survive, and has created a vacuum for propaganda, misinformation and disinformation. For a period, the military in Ukraine also restricted accreditation and access to the front line, although in February of this year loosened these restrictions.

There are many issues for us to discuss, and that I hope we can discuss: soaring insurance costs; unique local contexts of different conflicts; and the changing use of technology to target and silence journalists covering conflict. How the international community responds – or whether it will fail to respond – to these disturbing developments has never been more critical. Ireland understands this, having tragically lost journalists who were reporting in Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, Northern Ireland and the Republic in recent years. How Ireland can push for greater protection and accountability are questions that I hope this committee and the country keeps asking.