Journalists became the news earlier this week when an Israeli soldier was caught on camera pepper spraying medics and journalists north of Ramallah in the West Bank.
Reports say the Red Crescent medics in al-Bireh, near Beit El settlement, rushed to help a Palestinian youth who had been hit by an IDF military jeep that drove through a group of protesters. An Israeli soldier pushed the medics back and began using the pepper spray on the workers and journalists covering the scene.
“An Israeli officer attacked our staff directly without any warning,” al-Ghad al-Arabi reporter Diya Housheya said, according to the Middle East Eye. “He didn't ask us to stay away. At the beginning he beat us directly and then he sprayed pepper gas in our faces."
Palestinian Red Crescent Society spokesman Erab Fuqaha told the Middle East Eye the organization has documented 228 cases in which its teams and ambulances have been attacked by the IDF. Of those incidents, 116 emergency medical technicians have been injured.
The Foreign Press Association on Friday released a statement calling the incident "abusive and a gross violation of press freedom."
“Despite repeated attempts by the Foreign Press Association to meet with commanders to discuss the situation, there has been no response from the Border Police or the Defense Ministry," the statement said. "This ignoring of the problem cannot continue. Video footage of past incidents has shown Israel's security forces to be the protagonist in several cases, suggesting a systemic problem.”
By Hayat Norimine
