“It’s time to move on from verbal condemnation to action”, said Julie Majerczak, Director of the Brussels office of Reporters Without Borders, commenting on the EU’s position on Israel’s actions in its war against Hamas.
This statement is taken from a press release issued by RSF and 59 other organisations calling on the EU to suspend the association agreement with Israel on Thursday 22 August.
This request follows “the unprecedented number of journalists killed - more than 130 Palestinian media professionals since 7 October - and the ongoing violations of press freedom by the Israeli authorities”.
The NGO believes that Israel is not respecting the foundations of its agreement with the EU, namely, according to Article 2 of the agreement, “respect for human rights and democratic principles”, points out Ms Majerczak.
The signatories insist that Israel is violating human rights and international humanitarian law and call on European leaders to “publicly demand” that Israel guarantee media access and respect for freedom of information, protect the lives of journalists, be held accountable and end impunity. (Original version in French by Florent Servia)