New oral history project eulogises slain Palestinian journalists via friends' voice notes

What Happened

The Writers Against The War On Gaza (Wawog) collective launched an oral history project titled The Living Record, which features voice notes and eulogies for 50 Palestinian journalists killed in Gaza since 7 October 2023. The project aims to provide personal narratives for media workers whose deaths have been subject to conflicting classifications by international organizations. According to the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate, at least 270 Palestinian media workers have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza. Conversely, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reports 209 deaths, following a review that removed 20 individuals from its count after Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad identified them as combatants.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The project highlights a significant divide in how the deaths of Palestinian journalists are documented and perceived, reflecting broader tensions regarding media neutrality, the definition of combatants in asymmetric warfare, and allegations of journalistic malpractice in Western coverage of the Gaza conflict.

Watch For

Monitor the completion of the CPJ database review, which is expected in the coming weeks, and the planned expansion of The Living Record project to include journalists killed in southern Lebanon.