Belal Jadallah (Arabic: بلال جادالله; May 1, 1978 – November 19, 2023) was a Palestinian journalist and the director of the press freedom non-governmental organization Press House - Palestine . He was killed by Israeli shelling during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war.
Belal Jadallah | |
|---|---|
بلال جادالله | |
 | |
| Born | May 1, 1978 |
| Died | November 19, 2023 (aged 45) Zeitoun, Gaza City |
| Other names | Belal Jadallah Salem |
| Occupation | Journalist |
Life and education edit
Jadallah was born on May 1, 1978, in Gaza. He earned a bachelor's degree in English literature.[1] Four of Jadallah's relatives work for Reuters.[2] His youngest brother, Ali Jadallah, is a photojournalist.[3]
Career edit
Jadallah worked as the director of media and international relations at Palestinian National Authority until 2006. He was the Head of the Palestinian Independent Center for Media Services until 2013.[1]
In 2014, Jadallah founded Press House-Palestine, a Gazan non-profit organization focused on freedom of the press and journalism education.[4] Jadallah and his organization were influential to many Gazan journalists, and Jadallah was described as the "godfather of Palestinian journalists".[4] For decades, he had trained journalists and taught safety courses.[5]
Jadallah had also contributed to work by the Committee to Protect Journalists, including by locating family members of journalists killed by Israeli military in Gaza and acquiring photos for a May 2023 report.[6]
Belal reported on the 2023 Israel–Hamas war from Gaza. Jadallah and Press House also worked to provide safety and technical equipment and office space to journalists covering the conflict.[4][6] According to his brother, photojournalist Ali Jadallah, he had been "very determined to stay in Gaza City for over a month and strongly believed it was his moral duty to tell the world what he witnesses in the besieged small city, assisting the needy people around him amid this humanitarian catastrophe".[3]
Death edit
According to members of his family, Jadallah had told them he was planning to travel south from Gaza City on November 19 when he was killed in his car by an Israeli strike in the neighborhood of Zeitoun.[4][3] His family also said that Jadallah's brother-in-law, Abdulkareem Abed, was seriously injured in the strike.[3][2]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ a b "Freedom of Expression is a must! - Press House". Council of Europe. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
- ^ a b "Three more journalists killed in Gaza in Israeli offensive, relatives say". Reuters. November 19, 2023. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
- ^ a b c d Karanth, Sanjana (November 20, 2023). "Belal Jadallah, A Giant In Palestinian Journalism, Killed In Israeli Bombing". HuffPost. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
- ^ a b c d Osman, Nadda (November 20, 2023). "'Godfather' of Palestinian journalism Belal Jadallah killed in Israeli shelling". Middle East Eye. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
- ^ Brown, Chris (November 22, 2023). "Journalists are dying at an alarming rate as Israel bombards Gaza and southern Lebanon". CBC News. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
- ^ a b "CPJ pays tribute to slain Palestinian press freedom defender Bilal Jadallah". Committee to Protect Journalists. November 20, 2023. Retrieved December 9, 2023.