It remains to be seen if the Biden administration’s platitudes about press freedom only apply to journalists they like

American Jeremy Loffredo was one of five journalists reportedly detained by the Israel Defense Forces on 9 October. He’s reportedly charged with endangering national security and aiding and sharing information with the enemy, apparently because of his reporting on Iranian strikes.

The case requires the immediate attention of American officials (Loffredo has reportedly been released from custody but is barred from leaving Israel as authorities try to build their case). But, no matter what direction it takes, it should serve to highlight the plight of dozens of Palestinian journalists who are being held incommunicado in Israeli prisons.

Loffredo’s American citizenship makes it more likely – but by no means guaranteed – that the Biden administration might actually care that he’s being detained. After all, Joe Biden was eager to claim credit for the release of the journalists Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva, who were held in Russian prison on bogus charges.

If Israel’s theory is that reporters illegally share information with the enemy whenever the enemy reads the news, that could criminalize a whole lot of journalism. If Israel has proof that Loffredo did something more nefarious than that, it should say so, and be specific. The Dissenter reports that several more mainstream journalists reported similar information and footage to Loffredo and weren’t charged – if so, why was a particularly adversarial journalist singled out?

  • solo@slrpnk.netEnglish
    3·
    19 days ago

    It looks like the U.S. Journalist Jeremy Loffredo was released

    Although an Israeli judge granted his release from police custody, he was ordered to remain in the country until October 20, allowing investigators more time to bring additional allegations or to further interrogate Loffredo,

    Israeli police had held Loffredo, an independent journalist from New York, on suspicion of assisting an enemy in war, a serious allegation that carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment or death,

    “The claim that Loffredo and The Grayzone represent Israel’s enemy in wartime merely suggests that the Israeli government views the American people and free press as a legitimate target,”

    The statement also called on the U.S. State Department to come to Loffredo’s defense, saying that the U.S. “has an obligation to defend its journalists who are merely adhering to their ethical obligation to inform the public of pertinent facts.”