At least 31 journalists and media workers were killed in Gaza and Israel between 7 October and 1 November, the Committee for the Protection of Journalists (CPJ) said in a report.
While four of the journalists died in the 7 October Hamas attack, which killed more than 1,400 people in Israel, most died in the Israeli airstrikes that have killed more than 8,500 Palestinians so far in response to the Hamas attack.
Another eight journalists have been reported injured, while nine are missing or under arrest, and there are further reports that the CPJ is still working to confirm.
“Journalists are civilians doing important work during times of crisis and must not be targeted by warring parties,” the CPJ cited its Middle East and North Africa programme co-ordinator Sherif Mansour as saying.
The CPJ report comes after the Israeli Defence Forces told Reuters and Agence France Press (AFP) that it could not guarantee the safety of journalists in the Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) lodged a complaint with the International Criminal Court over “war crimes against journalists in Palestine and Israel”.
“The scale and gravity of the crimes targeting reporters, especially in Gaza, call for a priority investigation by the ICC,” the organisation said.
RSF cites 34 journalists killed in the conflict.
