The Journalist Support Committee: The Israeli Occupation Disguised as Journalists is a Crime Punishable by International Law

The Journalist Support Committee confirmed that the Israeli special forces were disguised as Palestinian journalists during the storming of Birzeit University campus, on Thursday, March 8, 2018, in an aim to arrest a Palestinian student. Such Act is described as a crime and a piracy against the Palestinian press which is punishable under international law.

"The exploitation of the press profession by the occupation is a serious violation of the press profession and a dangerous precedent that endangers the lives of Palestinian journalists," said Mr. Saleh Al-Masry, coordinator of the Journalist Support Committee in Palestine.

Mr. Saleh called on the International Federation of Journalists to stand up to its responsibility for the repeated attacks by the occupation forces against Palestinian journalists and the media profession, stressing that what happened on the campus of Birzeit University is a flagrant violation of all international laws and regulations.

Five interrogators entered the campus of Birzeit University, on Thursday 8 March 2018, and approached Omar al-Kiswani, a student, and told him that they were journalists who wanted to conduct an interview, after they cornered him, as seen in a video below, they assaulted him and arrested him and escaped under the protection of Israeli patrols.

The Coordinator of the Journalist Support Committee in Palestine said that the Israeli occupation forces escalated their attacks against journalists. In February alone they committed at least 50 attacks against Palestinian journalists, calling for a serious stand to unite the press corps to confront the dangers faced by the Palestinian press.

Watch the moment of assault on the student Omar:

Journalist Support Committee - Palestine
8 March 2018