The Palestinian Center for the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared (PCMFD) expresses its profound concern over the continued ambiguity surrounding the fate of journalists Nidal Al-Waheidi and Haitham Abdel-Wahed. All contact with the two journalists was lost on October 7, 2023, while they were performing their professional duties near the Beit Hanoun/Erez crossing in the northern Gaza Strip.
The PCMFD emphasizes that the passage of 939 days without any credible information regarding their whereabouts or physical integrity raises serious questions about their fate. This prolonged silence leaves all possibilities open, including extrajudicial killing or unacknowledged detention and enforced disappearance by Israeli forces.
The Center clarifies that communication was severed following intensive Israeli airstrikes targeting the specific area where they were covering events. These strikes resulted in the immediate killing of their colleague, journalist Ibrahim Lafi, at the same location.
Witness testimonies and documented evidence confirm that Al-Waheidi and Abdel-Wahed were clearly wearing blue press vests marked “PRESS” and were equipped with professional cameras and identification documents. This underscores that their presence at the site was strictly for media coverage. Under the rules of International Humanitarian Law, specifically Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions, journalists are protected as civilians and must not be targeted, detained, or disappeared.
The disappearance of Al-Waheidi and Abdel-Wahed is part of a broader, harrowing humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, where approximately 7,000 individuals face an unknown fate—missing under rubble, lost during displacement, or detained without official acknowledgment. This burgeoning phenomenon of the “missing” imposes a crushing psychological and humanitarian burden on Palestinian society, exacerbated by the absence of effective international intervention and Israel’s persistent refusal to engage seriously with these files.
The families of the missing endure severe psychological distress due to constant anxiety and the lack of certainty. These families often cling to unconfirmed reports from released detainees who claim to have seen their loved ones in various detention centers. Notably, the family of Nidal Al-Waheidi received a report from a former detainee who claimed to have heard his name inside Shikma Prison in Ashkelon, yet no official confirmation has been provided to end this state of ambiguity.
The PCMFD has professionally documented the cases of Al-Waheidi and Abdel-Wahed and has submitted their files to the United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID) as part of its ongoing mandate to document cases of enforced disappearance.
Their disappearance occurs within a systematic campaign targeting journalists in Gaza. Documented data indicates that since the start of the Israeli military aggression, at least 262 journalists have been killed, 420 injured, and 50 others detained. Such figures reflect a clear policy aimed at silencing witnesses and obstructing the documentation of events on the ground.
The Palestinian Center for the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared (PCMFD) calls upon international institutions and United Nations bodies to take urgent and effective action. We demand immediate pressure on the Israeli authorities to reveal the fate of the two journalists, disclose their exact whereabouts, and ensure full compliance with International Humanitarian Law regarding the protection of journalists.
