That blue vest with the conspicuous white inscription “Press” that is now worth more than a Medal of Honor in places like Gaza City. Eyelids blink hard to keep from giving in to tears. This made breathing difficult. Right hand raised to mouth, as one does when holding back words that cannot be spoken. And then, friends. Al-Jazeera colleagues, wearing the same blue vest, accompany him in the corridor of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital to the lifeless bodies of his 15-year-old son Mahmoud, his seven-year-old daughter Sham and his wife. We see it. We see it all in the videos that come to us from the Gaza Strip, which has been bombarded by the Israeli army for 19 days since Hamas killed 1,400 Israelis on October 7th. We see journalist Al-Dahdouh, 53, bending on his knees and approaching his son’s face, among the bodies of dozens of other children. We hear him say: “What happened is clear, it is a series of targeted attacks against children, women and civilians.” “There is absolutely no safe place in Gaza.”
Al-Dahdouh is head of the correspondent bureau of Al Jazeera, the Qatar-based broadcaster. While reporting on the deaths of others, he learned live about the deaths of his own. They fled to the Nuseirat refugee camp in the center of the Gaza Strip after Israel asked Palestinians living in the north to leave their homes. “The Israel Defense Forces said this area was safe, so my family moved here. But death followed them, raids followed them,” Al-Dahdouh explained.
We looked further. The images of the three bodies lying on the floor wrapped in sheets. The journalist stands in front and hundreds of people behind him. We saw relatives crying desperately. Al-Dahdouh holds the small body of his 18-month-old nephew. For nineteen days he has been describing the torment of the citizens of Gaza; he knows exactly what effect the words “Your son is dead” have on their faces. The crying at funerals and the feeling of resignation of a people who are losing everything. But he didn’t think he needed to tell his story. About having to tell his children’s dream world: “Mahmoud was about to graduate from high school; he wanted to become a journalist.” He hoped to have brought them to safety in an area that was considered “less dangerous.” He had followed all the Israeli army’s instructions, but it was not enough.
Colleagues say Al-Dahdouh is a courageous journalist who has worked in Gaza City for years. He was always the reference point for the editorial team. “Let’s hope you come back soon to tell us what’s happening here,” everyone comments.
“The indiscriminate attack by Israeli occupation forces resulted in the tragic loss of Al-Dahdouh’s wife, son and daughter, and the rest of his family is buried under the rubble,” Al Jazeera Media said in a statement to Network. The Qatari broadcaster reiterates that they are “deeply concerned for the safety and well-being of our colleagues in Gaza and hold the Israeli authorities responsible for their safety.” We call on the international community to intervene and put an end to these attacks against civilians to protect the lives of innocent people.”
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 24 reporters died in 19 days. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, the number of deaths in Gaza has increased to seven thousand three thousand children.