Fatah bans press on PA-Hamas clashes

[drdon326]

The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday instructed local reporters and photographers to refrain from covering the clashes between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority security forces.

In a statement, the syndicate, which is controlled by members of the ruling Fatah party said that "pictures that some journalists are conveying to the international and local public opinion don't benefit the struggle of the Palestinian people for liberation and independence."

It warned the journalists against continuing to cover the "unfortunate clashes for fear that that they would add fuel to the fire."

The syndicate warned that anyone who violates its instructions would have to bear the personal and legal consequences of his or her deeds.

Referring specifically to local photographers, the syndicate urged them to place the national interests of the Palestinians above all other considerations.

"Refraining from covering these sad events will end the current conflict," it pointed out.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1121796128649

............................................................

Palestinian Freedom of Press??.....dead.

[idontwantaname]

1. its been dead for a while...

as AP sends all its west bank and gaza reports through jerusalem where they get edited and rewritten... and the IDF erases incriminating photos and movie evidence from leaving the scene.

[newyorican]

2. What's that sound?

[pelsar]

3. actually.....no.....

reporters in the westbank and gaza have been know to "self censor" themselves since they want to stay alive......

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=21936

and given the internet etc. its hardly difficult to send out images the "israel" doesnt want to be seen......

of course the Committee to Protect Journalists,...is hardly enthralled with the way the PA threatens journalists either.....

"he pro-PA Palestinian Journalists' Association threatened to take action against journalists who covered internal strife. In June, the association announced a ban "on dealing with or handling any type of statements that touch on internal events and carry between their lines words that slander, libel or harm others." It said journalists who violated this code would be punished, though it did not specify how."

http://www.cpj.org/attacks04/mideast04/israel.html

the lack of freedom of the press within the palestenian areas is a palestenains affair..blaiming israel for their own racist policies is simply......absurd....

the idea the palestenians are not responsable for their own actions is not a good idea...statehood requires responsability and owing up to one actions, good and bad, without which their state will simply join the list of failed states...and israel will undoubtly be blamed.

[idontwantaname]

4. hey pelsar...

yes. i was actually visiting a reporter friend in his office when a hamas parade came down the street we were on.

however the internal struggles within palestinian political reporting are relatively new while media censorship and intimidation of reporters by the IDF isnt...

might i add that israels targeted assassinations(last few years) of leaders lead to the greater struggle between hamas1 and hamas2 and fatah.

so it seems that each side has things to hide and journalists are stuck in the middle.

ps- actually i have funy and fond memories of meeting foreign journalists in the west bank... many of them thought the ISM folks were crazy... and IDF soldiers were trigger happy.

one morning a italian photographer who seemed to dislike ISM but didnt get involved in political talk with anyone went to "visit" the wall... he got a bit lost along the wall and israeli snipers shot a couple times in his direction... he jumped into a ditch with barbed wire and returned to the hostel quite shaken up with torn clothes and no cigarettes...

-------------------------------------------------

http://www.cpj.org/attacks04/mideast04/israel.html

"The occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip remained two of the most dangerous and unpredictable assignments for journalists in 2004, largely because of the conduct of Israeli troops."

<snip>

" Israel's army and security services continued to commit a range of abuses against working journalists, who faced the possibilities of gunfire, physical abuse, and arrest, in addition to sharp limits on their freedom of movement."

[pelsar]

5. things to hide...

of course...I dont put an "angle wings" on the israeli side.....

but the internal PA stuff has been going on since oslo...the most famous incident was the video of the two israeli they lynched in Ramalla..after the videos were smuggled out, the italian reporters had to get out as their lives were threatened by the various groups.....that was the most famous incident....and just an example. (you wont find an example like that within the israeli society)

The israeli side doesnt censor itself out of fear...thats the big difference. We've got more reporters in Gaza and the westbank than we know what to do with


As far as deliberate attacks on journalists by the IDF...i dont put much into that,......journalist in combat zones are going to get shot at because people get shot in combat zones...and given the numbers of them here and the fact that they actually put themselves within battles (thats where many of photographs come from) its amazing that so few actually get shot.

but sure they get man handled, abused and arrested..they put themselves and IDF troops in danger by their antics er job....they get in the way which may have an influence on whether I get killed or not. Whether or not all is justified is rather subjective, but their job description will definitly conflict with mine

[Behind the Aegis]

6. New?

"however the internal struggles within palestinian political reporting are relatively new..."

October 7, 2000. Walid Suleiman Amayreh, publisher of the biweekly Akhbar al-Khalil, was detained by Palestinian police after his live appearance on the Gulf-based satellite news station Al-Shareqah. During the program, Amayreh criticized the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) for rampant corruption and for pursuing a peace settlement with Israel. He also called for the release of imprisoned Hamas activists.

The journalist was questioned and forced to sign a pledge affirming that he would abide by Palestinian information laws. He was released after 30 hours in custody

October 12, 2000. A Palestinian mob prevented several cameramen and photographers from filming the killing of two Israeli soldiers in Ramallah. Some journalists were assaulted and had their film or cameras confiscated.

A cameraman from ABC News was kicked in the groin and stomach by the crowd and prevented from filming the event.

November 15, 2000. Palestinian National Authority (PNA) security forces raided the private Bethlehem television station Al-Roa' and temporarily forced it off the air. During the raid, two PNA soldiers beat station director Hamdi Farraj and several other staff members, the journalists said, while other soldiers threatened to shoot the staff and destroy the station's equipment. After forcing the staff outside, the soldiers locked the station's doors and confiscated the keys.

January 16, 2001. Majdi al-Arbid, a free-lance cameraman and the owner of a private production company in the Gaza Strip, was detained by the Preventive Security Services of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) in Gaza in connection with video footage of the PNA's execution of a Palestinian accused of collaborating with Israel.

And then there is this...
September 11, 2001. According to international press reports, Palestinian police and armed gunmen prevented several news photographers and cameramen from documenting events in the West Bank city of Nablus, where groups of Palestinians celebrated the terrorist attacks on the United States by honking horns and firing live ammunition rounds into the air.

According to The Associated Press, Palestinian security authorities summoned a free-lance cameraman working for the AP that same day and warned him not to air his footage of the events. Members of the Tanzim militia, affiliated with the Fatah organization, also issued warnings that the AP cameraman interpreted as threatening.

Later, the AP quoted Palestinian National Authority (PNA) cabinet secretary Ahmed Abdel Rahman as saying that the PNA " not guarantee the life" of the AP cameraman if the film were broadcast. In the end, the footage was not aired, apparently out of concern for the journalist's safety.

September 20, 2001
The Palestinian National Authority (PNA) was evidently embarrassed by Al-Roa's bulletin, which suggested that a group technically under Arafat's control might have violated the recently announced Palestinian cease-fire.

By Al Roa's own count, it was the 10th time PNA authorities had closed the station since it was founded in the early 1990s.

http://www.cpj.org/Briefings/2002/Israel_cases.html#41a

My own words: Also military censorship is enforced in Iraq and had its heyday in Viet Nam. The embedded journalists in Iraq were only allowed to go into prescribed areas. No doubt their reports were also reviewed by censorship authorities.

[pelsar]

7. idontwantaname....

just a little more informal info..

I understand that you've never had warning shots fired at you.... (as the journalist you mentioned) but its quite common.....it depends on the areas and sensitivies that is going on, but the idea is to keep information going to the various groups ("military info")

i can recall lots of time when we go on line, palestenian kids are sent out to test our "reactions"...to see how close they can get to the fence (gaza) or elsewhere we before shoot the warning shots....kind of a game if you will. The result of that has a lot of meaning as to the coming month....

as far as trigger happy IDF soldiers....hmm, i would say almost every combat soldier once he/she finishes training wants "some action" much like the rookie cop, paramedic, fireman etc....the need to see if your any good, how do you handle yourself, etc...and that could very well translate into being "trigger happy". The IDF does have several interesting methods to "keep" the youngsters in line, but its impossible to deny as any combat soldier will testify to....