Israel
Reuters Cameraman Killed in GazaPosted Apr 23 2008
Fadel Shana, a Reuters cameraman was killed by a tank shell April 16 in Gaza. According to the International Press Institute (IPI), Shana was killed near the Al Bureij refugee camp seconds after he left his vehicle to film an Israeli tank ‘dug in’ several hundred meters away. Shana’s colleague Wafa Abu Mizyed, a Reuters soundman, suffered a shrapnel wound during the attack.
Doctors at Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital examined Shana and concluded that flechette darts fired from an Israeli tank shell caused his death. Reuters reported x-rays displayed showed several of the flechettes embedded in Shana’s chest and legs, while several more were found in his flak jacket.
According to The Guardian, Shana and Mizyed parked their vehicle approximately 200 meters short of Gaza’s main north-south Salahadin Road when the attack occurred. Both had been touring Gaza to report on the violence occurring there.
The Geneva Conventions 1977 Protocols state that journalists engaged in dangerous professional missions in conflict areas are civilians, therefore are entitled to protection against dangers from military operations, including the right to not be a focus point of an attack.
As of April 17, the Israeli military did not comment on any impending investigation into the attack. An Israeli military official expressed “sorrow” for Shana’s death yet said the area was one of “ongoing fighting against armed, extreme and dangerous terrorist organizations on a daily basis. The presence of media, photographers and other uninvolved individuals in areas of warfare is extremely dangerous and poses a threat to their lives.” The Guardian reported that the Israeli military said that all of its weapons “are legal under international law.”