Live Update arrow right icon From the Liveblog of Saturday, September 7, 2024

Palestinian AFP photographer wins prestigious prize for Gaza war coverage

By Agencies and ToI Staff 7 September 2024, 11:57 pm 52 Edit

Palestinian AFP photographer Mahmud Hams has won the prestigious Visa d’Or News prize for his coverage of the ongoing war in Gaza, the Visa pour l’Image Association announces.

The 44-year-old, who has worked for AFP in Gaza since 2003, thanks the jury for the award in a recorded video message aired at the ceremony in Perpignan, France.

In a statement issued by AFP, he denounces the alleged targeting of journalists during the conflict. Israel denies targeting the press in its war against Hamas in Gaza and has presented evidence in the past that journalists killed in the ongoing fighting were also terror operatives.

“I spent my childhood in Gaza, and in 23 years of photojournalism, I have witnessed every war, every conflict there,” Hams says in the statement.

“But this war is unlike any other, without precedent from the very first day.

“My colleagues and I have had to face incredibly difficult conditions, with no red lines and no protections for anyone,” he adds.

Most Popular