News outlets call for free access to Gaza for foreign media
News outlets call for free access to Gaza for foreign media/node/2468286/media
News outlets call for free access to Gaza for foreign media
Clarissa Ward, CNN’s chief international correspondent, who also signed the letter, is believed to be the only journalist not resident in Gaza who has managed to enter the territory since Oct. 7 without being embedded with Israeli troops. (AFP/File)
News outlets call for free access to Gaza for foreign media
After 5 months of war, journalists are still denied the freedom to enter the territory without direct supervision by the Israeli army, which is accused of ‘limiting insights’
In an open letter to Israel and Egypt, the organizations also called for greater efforts to ensure the safety of local reporters in the territory
Updated 28 February 2024
Arab News
LONDON: More than 50 broadcast journalists from major outlets have signed an open letter sent to the Israeli and Egyptian embassies in which they call for foreign media outlets to be granted unrestricted access to Gaza.
The letter, signed by representatives of British media organizations BBC News, Sky News, ITV News and Channel 4 News, and US broadcasters CNN, NBC, CBS and ABC, expressed frustration about the limited coverage they are able to provide because of the obstacles faced by international news crews.
“Almost five months into the war in Gaza, foreign reporters are still being denied access to the territory, outside of the rare and escorted trips with the Israeli military,” they wrote.
“We urge the governments of Israel and Egypt to allow free and unfettered access to Gaza for all foreign media. We call on the government of Israel to openly state its permission for international journalists to operate in Gaza and for the Egyptian authorities to allow international journalists access to the Rafah Crossing.”
The letter also calls for improved safety measures to protect local reporters on the ground in the territory.
“There is intense global interest in the events in Gaza and for now the only reporting has come from journalists who were already based there,” it said.
“It’s vital that local journalists’ safety is respected and that their efforts are bolstered by the journalism of members of the international media.
“The risks of conflict reporting are well understood by our organizations, who have decades of experience of reporting in war-zones around the world and in previous wars in Gaza.”
The signatories of the letter include noted correspondents including Alex Crawford of Sky News, Jeremy Bowen from the BBC, and Christiane Amanpour from CNN.
It is all but impossible for journalists to enter the Gaza Strip except under the direct supervision of the Israeli military, which has been accused of “offering only limited insight” by controlling the movement of journalists and their access to information.
Instead, news organizations are largely forced to rely on local journalists in Gaza to report the latest events and developments at a time when their lives, and those of their families, are at risk every day.
Crawford, the Sky News special correspondent, said that like many other journalists, she and her crew have “spent the bulk of the past nearly five months trying to get into Gaza” but have yet to pass through the Rafah border crossing from Egypt.
In one report, she said about 90 journalists are believed to have been killed since the war began on Oct. 7, an average of about 20 a month or one every other day.
“Can you take that in? Because I am finding that hard to,” she said.
Clarissa Ward, CNN’s chief international correspondent, who also signed the letter, is believed to be the only journalist not resident in Gaza who has managed to enter the territory since Oct. 7 without being embedded with Israeli troops. She traveled there with a medical team from the UAE.
Ward said the trip “provided a window into the war zone but only a small one.”
A look back at how Arab News marked its 50th anniversary
In a year crowded with news, the paper still managed to innovate and leverage AI to become available in 50 languages
Golden Jubilee Gala, held at the Diplomatic Quarter in Riyadh, now available to watch on YouTube
Updated 31 December 2025
Arab News
RIYADH: In 2025, the global news agenda was crowded with headlines concerning wars, elections and rapid technological change.
Inside the newsroom of Arab News, the year carried additional weight: Saudi Arabia’s first English-language daily marked its 50th anniversary.
And with an industry going through turmoil worldwide, the challenge inside the newsroom was how to turn a midlife crisis into a midlife opportunity.
For the newspaper’s team members, the milestone was less about nostalgia than about ensuring the publication could thrive in a rapidly changing and evolving media landscape.
“We did not want just to celebrate our past,” said Faisal J. Abbas, editor-in-chief of Arab News. “But more importantly, we were constantly thinking of how we can keep Arab News relevant for the next five decades.”
Faisal J. Abbas, editor-in-chief of Arab News. (Supplied)
The solution, he added, came down to two words: “Artificial intelligence.”
For the Arab News newsroom, AI was not a replacement for journalism but as a tool to extend it.
“It was like having three eyes at once: one on the past, one on the present, and one on the future,” said Noor Nugali, the newspaper’s deputy editor-in-chief.
Noor Nugali, deputy editor-in-chief of Arab News. (Supplied)
One of the first initiatives was the 50th anniversary commemorative edition, designed as a compact historical record of the region told through Arab News’ own reporting.
“It was meant to be like a mini history book, telling the history of the region using Arab News’ archive with a story from each year,” said Siraj Wahab, acting executive editor of the newspaper.
The issue, he added, traced events ranging from the outbreak of the Lebanese civil war in 1975 to the swearing-in of Donald Trump, while also paying homage to former editors-in-chief who shaped the newspaper’s direction over five decades.
The anniversary edition, however, was only one part of a broader strategy to signal Arab News’ focus on the future.
To that end, the paper partnered with Google to launch the region’s first AI-produced podcast using NotebookLM, an experimental tool that synthesizes reporting and archival material into audio storytelling.
The project marked a regional first in newsroom-led AI audio production.
The podcast was unveiled during a special 50th anniversary ceremony in mid-November, held on the sidelines of the Arab Media Forum, hosted by the Dubai Future Foundation. The event in the UAE’s commercial hub drew regional media leaders and officials.
Remarks at the event highlighted the project as an example of innovation in legacy media, positioning Arab News as a case study in digital reinvention rather than preservation alone.
“This is a great initiative, and I’m happy that it came from Arab News as a leading media platform, and I hope to see more such initiatives in the Arab world especially,” said Mona Al-Marri, director-general of the Government of Dubai Media Office, on the sidelines of the event.
“AI is the future, and no one should deny this. It will take over so many sectors. We have to be ready for it and be part of it and be ahead of anyone else in this interesting field.”
Behind the scenes, another long-form project was taking shape: a documentary chronicling Arab News’ origins and its transformation into a global, digital-first newsroom.
“While all this was happening, we were also working in-house on a documentary telling the origin story of Arab News and how it transformed under the current editor into a more global, more digital operation,” said Nugali.
The result was “Rewriting Arab News,” a documentary examining the paper’s digital transformation and its navigation of Saudi Arabia’s reforms between 2016 and 2018. The film charted editorial shifts, newsroom restructuring and the challenges of reporting during a period of rapid national change.
The documentary was screened at the Frontline Club in London, the European Union Embassy, Westminster University, and the World Media Congress in Bahrain. It later became available on the streaming platform Shahid and onboard Saudi Arabian Airlines.
The grand slam of the anniversary year was the Golden Jubilee of Arab News gala, held in late September in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter. (AN photo)
It was also nominated for an Association for International Broadcasting award.
In early July, a special screening of the documentary took place at the EU Embassy in Riyadh. During the event, EU Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Christophe Farnaud described the film as an “embodiment” of the “incredible changes” that the Kingdom is undergoing.
“I particularly appreciate … the historical dimension, when (Arab News) was created in 1975 — that was also a project corresponding to the new role of the Kingdom,” Farnaud said. “Now the Kingdom has entered a new phase, a spectacular phase of transformation.”
Part of the documentary is narrated by Prince Turki Al-Faisal, the former Saudi ambassador to the US, who in the film delves into the paper’s origins.
Prince Turki Al-Faisal, the former Saudi ambassador to the US. (AN photo)
The grand slam of the anniversary year was the Golden Jubilee of Arab News gala, held in late September in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter.
Hosted by the Dean of Diplomatic Corps in Saudi Arabia and Ambassador of Djibouti to Riyadh Dya-Eddine Said Bamakhrama, the evening featured a keynote address by Prince Turki, who spoke about Arab News’ founding under his father, the late King Faisal, and its original mission to present the Kingdom to the English-speaking world.
The Dean of Diplomatic Corps in Saudi Arabia and Ambassador of Djibouti to Riyadh Dya-Eddine Said Bamakhrama (far left). (AN photo)
Arab News was established in Jeddah in 1975 by brothers Hisham and Mohammed Ali Hafiz under the slogan to give Arabs a voice in English while documenting the major transformations taking place across the Middle East.
The two founders were honored with a special trophy presented by Prince Turki, Assistant Media Minister Abdullah Maghlouth, Editor-in-Chief Abbas, and family member and renowned columnist Talat Hafiz on behalf of the founders.
During the gala, Abbas announced Arab News’ most ambitious expansion yet: the launch of the publication in 50 languages, unveiled later at the World Media Congress in Madrid in cooperation with Camb.AI.
The grand slam of the anniversary year was the Golden Jubilee of Arab News gala, held in late September in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter. (AN photo)
The Madrid launch in October underscored Arab News’ aim to reposition itself not simply as a regional paper, but as a global platform for Saudi and Middle Eastern perspectives.
The event was attended by Princess Haifa bint Abdulaziz Al-Mogrin, the Saudi ambassador to Spain; Arab and Spanish diplomats; and senior editors and executives.
As the anniversary year concluded, Arab News released the full video of the Golden Jubilee Gala to the public for the first time, making the event accessible beyond the room in which it was held.
For a newspaper founded in an era of typewriters and wire copy, the message of its 50th year was clear: longevity alone is not enough. Relevance, the newsroom concluded, now depends on how well journalism adapts without losing sight of its past.
