Targeting of Journalists During “Operation Summer Camps”

During “Operation Summer Camps,” journalists were targeted multiple times by Israeli forces, raising serious concerns about the safety of media professionals in conflict zones.

Ongoing Military Operation: • Israel has been conducting a large-scale military operation across the occupied West Bank for the sixth consecutive day, resulting in the deaths of at least 30 Palestinians. • As part of this operation, Israeli occupation forces invaded Kafr Dan village, west of Jenin, where they cordoned off and demolished a house. During the raid, they killed a 16-year-old Palestinian girl and fired live ammunition at journalists, injuring a reporter and a photojournalist.

Journalists Injured in Kafr Dan: • Ayman Nubani and Mohammad Mansour, photojournalists working for the WAFA Agency, were injured in Kafr Dan after being directly targeted by Israeli gunfire. The two journalists were traveling in a car near Jenin when Israeli forces opened fire on them. They were attempting to reach an area in the village where Israeli forces had besieged a house for several hours.

• Ayman Nubani, who was injured by fragments, recounted, "We miraculously survived death... If we didn’t drive quickly, they would have killed us all," as reported by female journalist Shuruq As'ad, Director of the Palestine Journalism Hub and MCD Radio Correspondent in Palestine.

• Wafa photographer Ayman Al-Nubani told The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate that Israeli forces “directly targeted” seven journalists with live fire, journalists who were riding in three press vehicles and wearing press protection vests “We narrowly escaped death,” Al-Nubani explained. “If we hadn’t sped up a bit in our car, they would have killed us. It was a direct assassination attempt.”

• The photographer said he and his colleagues – Wafa photographer Mohammed Mansour, Raneen Sawafta with the Reuters news agency and freelance journalist Yazan Hamayel – were injured during the incident. Another reported name of injured journalist during the raid is Mujahid Al-Saadi.

• Journalist Raneen Sawafta, a cameraman, was injured by an Israeli bullet, and three of his colleagues were injured by fragments during the raid in Kafr Dan, Jenin. • Al-Nubani added: “Ambulances arrived immediately, and we were transferred to Ibn Sina Governmental Hospital in Jenin, but [Israeli] forces intercepted us and obstructed the ambulances, … surrounding the hospital [and] subjecting us to an investigation while we were injured.” • The incident has caused widespread outrage and concern among media professionals and human rights advocates worldwide.

Additional Incident: • Jaraah Khalaf, one of the injured journalists, reported that he and other reporters were covering an Israeli siege on a house in Kafr Dan, near Jenin, when they came under direct Israeli fire. Khalaf emphasized that all journalists were clearly identified, wearing vests labeled with "PRESS" in English, and their vehicles also carried the same insignia. According to witnesses, Israeli army forces raided the town early Tuesday, besieging a house and demanding its occupants surrender via loudspeakers. The house was subsequently demolished by Israeli military bulldozers, with the Health Ministry reporting that a child and another Palestinian were injured during the raid.

Wider Targeting of Journalists:

• According to live footage, Israeli soldiers used machine guns, bulldozers, and grenades to target journalists in various locations, including Jenin, Nablus, and Kafr Dan. • On September more than 5 journalists, including Jarah Kalaf, a freelance Journalist, were injured by Israeli army fire in the West Bank. • An Israeli soldier opened fire at Palestinian journalists whilst they were covering the invasion of the occupation forces in Thenaba neighborhood in Tulkarm city. • On 3 September, The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate says Israeli forces are targeting journalists with live bullets in the town of Kfar Dan, west of Jenin, in the occupied West Bank, reports the Wafa news agency.

Medical Response:

• The Red Crescent reported that several Palestinian journalists were injured on Tuesday by Israeli military fire in Kafr Dan. • While two of the injured journalists were treated on the spot by company doctors, the other two were taken to the hospital for further treatment.