Israeli strike on Yemen newspaper kills 31 journals, deadliest attack in 16 years: report | World News
Yemenis cary the coffins of 31 local journals reportedly killed in Israeli airstrikes last week, during their funeral in Sanaa, Yemen. (AP Photo)
Thirty-one journals and media staff were killed in Israeli strikes on newspaper offices in Yemen last week, in what the Committee to Protect Journals (CPJ) has called the deadliest attack on journals since 2009.
The strike hit a newspaper complex in Sana’a on 10 September, housing three Houthi-linked media outlets. At the time, staff of the 26 September and Yemen newspapers — both affiliated with the Houthis — were working on their weekly edition, increasing the number of journals inside. In total, 35 people were killed, including a child accompanying a journal, while 131 others were wounded, according to Yemen’s Houthi-run health minry.
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“This is a brutal and unjustified attack that targeted innocent people whose only crime was working in the media field, armed with nothing but their pens and words,” said Nasser al-Khadri, editor-in-chief of the 26 September newspaper, The Guardian reported.
The CPJ, The Guardian reported, said the strike was the second-deadliest incident for journals it has ever recorded, after the 2009 Maguindanao massacre in the Philippines, in which 32 journals were killed.
The Israeli military said it targeted “military sites” in Sana’a, including what it described as the Houthis’ public relations arm, accusing it of spreading “psychological terror.” The strikes were framed as retaliation for repeated Houthi attacks on Israel, which the Houthis say are acts of solidarity with Palestinians during the war in Gaza. The group has fired missiles at Israel and attacked Red Sea shipping since October 2023.
Rights groups stressed that journals, even those affiliated with armed groups, are considered civilians under international law unless directly participating in hostilities.
The CPJ said the Yemen attack fits a broader pattern of Israel killing journals across the region while justifying such strikes labelling them as combatants. Since 7 October 2023, at least 247 journals have been killed in Gaza, according to the UN. Israel has also targeted journals in Lebanon, including those linked to pro-Hezbollah outlets.
“Since 7 October, Israel has emerged as a regional killer of journals,” said CPJ regional programme director Sara Qudah, The Guardian. “This latest killing spree is a grave violation of international law and a terrifying warning to journals across the region: no place is safe.”
