The Palestine News and Information Agency (WAFA) organized a vigil on Sunday in solidarity with our colleague, journalist Rasha Herzallah, who is currently imprisoned in Israeli jails.
The event took place outside the agency’s headquarters in the city of Al-Bireh, in the central West Bank, and was attended by prominent officials and a large crowd of journalists and activists.
Among the attendees were Ahmad Assaf, General Supervisor of the Official Media, Layla Ghannam, Governor of Ramallah and Al-Bireh, and members of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, including Wassel Abu Yusuf and Bassam al-Salhi.
Also present were Fatah Central Committee Deputy Secretary Sabri Saydam, head of the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs, Qaddoura Fares, and Head of the Journalists Syndicate, Nasser Abu Baker.
Minister Assaf stated that Herzallah’s detention is part of an ongoing Israeli campaign against journalists, which has intensified over the past year. He emphasized that the
Israeli government aims to suppress and intimidate the press to maintain a façade of democracy while the true situation reveals widespread human rights violations.
He highlighted the significant sacrifices made by Palestinian journalists, noting that more than 168 have been killed since the beginning of the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza, alongside hundreds injured and detained. Assaf drew comparisons to past global conflicts, illustrating the unprecedented level of targeting journalists by the Israeli government.
The rally also addressed the broader targeting of official media, referencing attacks on media facilities in Ramallah and Gaza, and the rising number of violations by the Israeli occupation against journalists, which have exceeded 1,940 in the past year.
Wassel Abu Yusuf called for accountability for those responsible for the killings of journalists and emphasized the need for international legal action against Israeli perpetrators.
Qaddoura Fares stressed the importance of the journalistic ro
le in documenting the realities of the Palestinian struggle, while urging a collective effort to maintain the flow of information despite the risks involved.
Herzallah was arrested on June 2, 2024, after being summoned by Israeli intelligence and is currently held in Damon prison. Her case represents one among many, with approximately 94 journalists detained since the onset of the current Israeli onslaught on Gaza.
Source: Palestine News and Information Agency – WAFA
