Int'l press body says Israel must be held accountable for attacks on journalists

BRUSSELS, July 25 (KUNA) -- The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) Friday joined increasing international calls for the Israeli government and its forces to be held accountable for the atrocities that are being carried out against journalists covering events in Gaza.
"We join the international demand for an end to impunity for attacks against journalists in Palestine and we demand that the Israeli forces who carried out these appalling murders and attacks answer for their crimes and face the full weight of justice," IFJ President Jim Boumelha, said in a statement.
"And we call on Israel, Hamas and all Palestinian armed groups to respect the rights and freedoms of all journalists and media workers and strictly abide by applicable norms of international humanitarian law and international human rights law," he said.
The statement noted that the IFJ affiliate, the Palestinian Journalists' Syndicate, has published a list detailing the attacks that Israeli forces have carried out against journalisst reporting on the crisis, including the four media workers who have been killed since the conflict began, the many media workers who have been injured, and the three media outlets that have been targeted.
The Brussels-based IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 134 countries. (end) nk.mt