Palestine Updates: Israel Expands West Bank Operations, Kills Civilians in Gaza; French Unions Sues Israel Over Gaza Media Blockade
Palestine Updates: Israel Expands West Bank Operations, Kills Civilians in Gaza; French Unions Sues Israel Over Gaza Media Blockade
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According to an Anadolu Agency report, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) significantly expanded its military operations in the northern West Bank on December 4. The raid imposed a tight curfew on the Kafr Saba neighborhood in Qalqilya, with soldiers conducting home searches, questioning residents, and restricting movement across multiple towns.
In response to what it describes as a “systematic obstruction of press freedoms,” the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the French Journalists’ Union (FJU) filed a formal complaint on December 3 with France’s National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office, Jurist News reported. The legal action cites a “media blackout” in Gaza since October 7, 2023 — during which no foreign journalist has been allowed entry — as well as reports of 225 murdered Palestinian media professionals and widespread harassment, arrests, and expulsions of reporters in Israel and the occupied territories. The complaint calls these measures a threat to freedom of information and potentially constituting war crimes under international law.
Meanwhile, at least five people have been killed after the Israeli army launched strikes on al-Mawasi, located west of the city of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip.
