Editorial: The Bravest Journalists

Bisan Owda, the inspiration behind this week’s cover, wears her press vest proudly as she walks around the rubble of her home. She reports on the devastating war on Gaza. 

Four years ago, Palestinian Bisan’s Instagram was filled with photos of her basketball team, selfies, travel photos, her dancing on the beach, her friends smiling, tips of the day, and the occasional activist post.  

Today at 25-years-old, she is a journalist, filmmaker and activist documenting the occupational war between Israel and Hamas to her 4.4 million Instagram followers. She shows a war from the inside, where over 30,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023. Bravely sharing footage of the conflict when she is in danger of it herself.  

In an Instagram reel two weeks ago, Bisan sat and spoke clearly to her camera. She holds her head high, sitting strong and straight. “It’s crucial to contemplate the fleeting nature of time because the threat of violence looms unpredictably. A bomb could drop at any moment, a mere meter away,” Bisan says.  

“We carry our mobile phones, documenting these massacres and atrocities, even as we endure the relentless onslaught of genocide.” 

As of March 13th, 90 Palestinian journalists were found dead, 16 injured, 4 missing, and 25 arrested.

Every video, every post Bisan makes is in protest of Israel. She candidly shows her life during war — her tears at the bombing of her own office where she made news videos. She risks her life every day to help her people. 

Olivia Alexander, speaking on behalf of New Zealand’s Ppl4Palestine says, “Who better to tell the stories of Gazans than Gazans themselves. They have grown up under Israel’s indefinite blockade and know exactly what their people are feeling and experiencing.” 

Alexander says so many journalists have been intentionally murdered over the past 5 months, “which shows the impact their truth-telling is having against the highly resourced Israeli propaganda machine”. 

Alexander says living in a relatively safe nation where our right to protest is protected by law, we have the opportunity to keep pushing these journalists' messages until Palestine is free. 

As students struggling with the cost of living, one of the strongest actions we can make is to choose where our money goes. Move your KiwiSaver to a provider like Simplicity or Pathfinder who has no ties with Zionist Israel. And boycott businesses in support of the genocide in Gaza, such as McDonalds, Obela Hommus, SodaStream, Starbucks, Dominos, Chemist Warehouse and Spotlight.  

If you have any spare coin, donate eSims through Gaza eSims, so Gazans can keep telling us what is truly happening on the ground. 

Here is the names of 95 journalists, photographers, videographers and filmmakers who have lost their lives 

Rest in power 

Muhammad Salama 

Mohamed Yaghi 

Zayd Abu Zayed 

Alaa Al-Hams 

Angam Ahmad Edwan 

Yasser Mamdouh El-Fady 

Nafez Abdel Jawad 

Rizq Al-Gharabli 

Mohammed Atallah 

Iyad El-Ruwagh 

Yazan al-Zuweidi   

Mohamed Jamal Sobhi Al-Thalathini 

Ahmed Bdeir 

Heba Al-Abadla 

Abdallah Iyad Breis 

Hamza Al Dahdouh 

Mustafa Thuraya 

Akram ElShafie 

Jabr Abu Hadrous 

Ahmed Khaireddine 

Mohamad Al-Iff 

Mohamed Azzaytouniyah 

Ahmad Jamal Al Madhoun 

Mohamed Naser Abu Huwaidi 

Mohamed Khalifeh 

Adel Zorob 

Abdallah Alwan 

Assem Kamal Moussa 

Haneen Kashtan 

Samer Abu Daqqa 

Duaa Jabbour 

Ola Atallah 

Hassan Farajallah 

Shaima El-Gazzar 

Abdullah Darwish 

Montaser Al-Sawaf 

Adham Hassouna 

Mostafa Bakeer 

Mohamed Mouin Ayyash 

Assem Al-Barsh 

Mohamed Nabil Al-Zaq 

Jamal Mohamed Haniyeh 

Farah Omar 

Rabih Al Maamari 

Ayat Khadoura 

Bilal Jadallah 

Abdelhalim Awad 

Sari Mansour 

Hassouneh Salim 

Mostafa El Sawaf 

Amro Salah Abu Hayah 

Mossab Ashour 

Ahmed Fatima 

Yaacoub Al-Barsh 

Ahmed Al-Qara 

Yahya Abu Manih 

Mohamed Abu Hassira 

Mohamed Al Jaja 

Mohamad Al-Bayyari 

Mohammed Abu Hatab 
 
Majd Fadl Arandas 

Iyad Matar 

Imad Al-Wahidi 

Majed Kashko 

Nazmi Al-Nadim 

Yasser Abu Namous 

Duaa Sharaf 

Jamal Al-Faqaawi 

Saed Al-Halabi 

Ahmed Abu Mhadi 

Salma Mkhaimer 

Ibrahim Marzouq 

Mohammed Imad Labad 

Roshdi Sarraj 

Roee Idan 

Mohammed Ali 

Khalil Abu Aathra 

Sameeh Al-Nady 

Mohammad Balousha 

Issam Bhar 

Abdulhadi Habib 

Yousef Maher Dawas 

Salam Mema 

Husam Mubarak 

Issam Abdallah 

Ahmed Shehab 

Mohamed Fayez Abu Matar 

Saeed al-Taweel 

Mohammed Sobh 

Hisham Alnwajha 

Assaad Shamlakh 

Yaniv Zohar 

Mohammad Al-Salhi 

Mohammad Jarghoun 

Ibrahim Mohammad Lafi