In an attempt to silence Palestinian journalists and prevent them from exposing the ongoing Israeli atrocities against Palestinian civilians, the Israeli occupation continues to target media professionals and restrict their work.
Along the same line, the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) arrested Palestinian journalist Walid Zayed, 28, after breaking into his family home in the Al-Masayef neighborhood in Ramallah, in the central West Bank.
Zayed’s father affirmed that the IOF stormed his house in Ramallah at around 5 a.m., held the family members in one single room, searched the house, and vandalized some of its contents before confiscating a computer, mobile phones, and press equipment.
“Then, the occupation soldiers handcuffed my son Zayed and took him on a military vehicle. They also prevented the family members from leaving at gunpoint,” the father said.
The family contacted a number of human rights and media institutions to find out their son’s location and fate. But it was in vain.
Walid Zayed obtained a master’s degree in journalism, and worked at several media institutions. He currently works as an editor at Al Jazeera Mubasher, and this is the first time he has been arrested by the Israeli occupation.
Since the start of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip on October 7, 59 journalists have been detained in the West Bank, including 39 people who are still in detention, while 133 journalists were killed in the Gaza Strip.
Since October 7, the Israeli occupation army has waged a devastating war on the Gaza Strip, which has left an enormous humanitarian catastrophe and a major health and environmental disaster.
The Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip constitutes a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and human rights, as it exposes the civilians’ lives to extreme danger and causes them great suffering, which requires urgent and decisive international intervention to stop the aggression and protect civilians in the Gaza Strip.
The international community and human rights organisations must take action in response to the ongoing Israeli crimes against Palestinian journalists.
