Al Jazeera's Gaza bureau chief and prominent Palestinian journalist Wael al-Dahdouh wins 32nd RSF Courage Award

Al Jazeera's Gaza bureau chief and prominent Palestinian journalist Wael al-Dahdouh won the Courage Award at the 32nd Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Press Freedom Awards 2024. 

Each year the awards honour journalists and media outlets who have made a significant contribution to defending press freedom around the world. This year, 18 journalists and teams from 22 countries, two media outlets and five photojournalists were in the running.

The Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Press Freedom Awards said "The award was given to Palestinian journalist Wael al-Dahdouh, who never stopped reporting despite the injuries and deaths of his family members in Gaza. RSF honours courageous journalists who have made sharing reliable information part of their life's struggle." Wael al-Dahdouh has been described as "a journalist who embodies resilience and the fight for reliable information."

Anya Schiffrin, directrice de la spécialisation en technologie, médias et communications à l'université Columbia et membre du conseil d'administration de RSF États-Unis, annonce que le lauréat du prix du courage 2024 est le journaliste palestinien Waël al-Dahdouh. pic.twitter.com/Wd1PeTjfjU

— RSF (@RSF_inter) December 4, 2024

In a video message posted on the RSF X handle, Dahdouh thanked the RSF team, saying, "I consider this a way to honor all my fellow journalists in Gaza who have covered and continue to cover the events of this terrible war waged by the Israeli army occupying Gaza." He added, "We made huge sacrifices and paid a costly price: exhaustion, sleepless nights, blood, sweat, fear, terror, losses, displacement, to ensure that all the news, photos and information coming from Gaza during this war could reach the rest of the world."

Al-Dahdouh was injured in an Israeli drone strike on a school sheltering displaced Palestinians in December and moved to Qatar for medical treatment. He is currently being treated in Germany. Dahdouh has become a symbol of courage during Israel's continued siege on Gaza, despite losing his wife, grandson and his three children - one of whom was also a journalist for Al Jazeera - he continued to report on the devastation in Gaza.