Journalists Killed in 2014 - Motive Confirmed: Rami Rayan

Palestine Network for Press and Media
July 30, 2014, in Shijaiyah, Gaza, Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory

Palestinian journalist Rayan was killed in an Israeli bombardment on a market in the Shijaiyah neighborhood of Gaza, according to his employer and news reports. At least 16 other people were killed and 160 wounded in the strike, according to news reports.

Rayan, a photographer for the local news agency the Palestine Network for Press and Media, was at the market to cover Palestinian citizens shopping for basic necessities during a four-hour truce called by the Israeli military, Nasr Abu Foul, the network's manager, told CPJ.

Mohammed Nour al-Din al-Deiri, a Palestinian media worker for the Palestine Network for Press and Media, was killed in the attack that day, according to reports and his father, who spoke to CPJ. Sameh al-Aryan, a cameraman for the Hamas-run Al-Aqsa TV channel, was also killed in the attack, Samir Abu Mohsen, the station's programs director, told CPJ. At least two other journalists were injured in the strikes. Abu Foul told CPJ that the network's editor, Mahmoud al-Qasas, had been badly injured in the strike and was hospitalized with head injuries. The local Al-Manara media agency said its cameraman, Hamid al-Shobaky, was also injured and hospitalized.

A graphic video posted by Al-Manara on its Facebook page shows repeated explosions rocking Shijaiyah, as the injured cry out for help amid ringing sirens. At the beginning of the video, Rayan is seen filming as ambulances arrive. By the end, he lies dead on the street among other victims. According to CNN, the video came from al-Shobaky's camera. After he was injured, his assistant picked up the camera and continued to film.

Graphic pictures on the network's Facebook page show Rayan in the hospital wearing a press helmet. Another photo by AFP/Getty Images shows him wearing a helmet and a vest marked "PRESS."

CPJ's calls and emails to the Israel Defense Forces' spokesperson's unit were not immediately returned. But IDF spokesman Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said on a July 22, 2014, press conference in response to CPJ's question about the recent death and injury of journalists and media workers in Gaza that "we do not target journalists [...] but journalists do sometimes put themselves in risky positions." He continued, "We have to do our best to facilitate and keep them out of harm's way."