Palestinian Journalists Forum on Saturday called on the High Commissioner for Human Rights and international press institutions to open an investigation into Israeli military orders to target Palestinian journalists.
The Forum in a statement asked the Palestinian Authority and human rights organizations to file a lawsuit against those responsible at the International Criminal Court and other courts that allow the prosecution of Israeli war criminals.
Based on a report published by Haaretz newspaper on Friday Israeli soldiers acting on their commanders’ orders beat five Palestinian journalists with batons and arrested them during a demonstration in Kafr Qaddum village east of Qalqilya.
An Israeli soldier later admitted under questioning that orders were to arrest anyone who violated the military closure order including journalists and to beat anyone who resisted arrest.
On the same day when the report was published journalist Esam al-Rimawi was injured after being deliberately hit with a tear gas canister by Israeli soldiers during his coverage of an anti-settlement demonstration in Bil’in village west of Ramallah.
Recent statistics revealed that the Israeli occupation forces committed more than 50 violations against Palestinian journalists during February 2018. Part of these attacks targeted them during their coverage of peaceful protests or confrontations in the West Bank and the eastern Gaza Strip.
