Reporting Gaza: A Public Talk with Wael Al Dahdouh
Key information
- Date
- Time
-
4:00 pm to 5:30 pm
- Venue
- SOAS Gallery
- Room
- Brunei Gallery Lecture Theatre (BGLT)
- Event type
- Lecture & Event highlights
About this event
The SOAS Department of Media Studies, in collaboration with Al Jazeera and the SOAS Islaah student society, is hosting a public talk with Wael Al Dahdouh, Al Jazeera’s Bureau Chief in Gaza.
Al Dahdouh will reflect on his experiences reporting from Gaza, reflecting on the demands of war journalism and reporting under constant threats and targeting. He will discuss the evolving challenges of war coverage in today’s media environment and what it means to bear witness to humanitarian crimes.
This event will explore how personal testimonies shape journalism, and how they influence the way international crimes are understood abroad.
About the speaker
Wael Al-Dahdouh is a Palestinian journalist from the Al-Zaytun neighbourhood in Gaza, and Al Jazeera’s bureau chief in Gaza. He is a veteran award-winning journalist, and has more than 27 years of experience covering Gaza and occupied Palestine.
He began his journalistic career in 1998, reporting for the Al-Quds newspaper, and in 2004 started working for Al Jazeera’s office in Gaza. Al-Dahdouh has reported Israel’s oppression, occupation, and blockade of Palestine for more than two decades. His tireless reporting has made him a direct target of Israel’s military violence—in a context in which Israel has murdered 247 journalists according to UN reports. Numerous members of Wael’s family were targeted and killed by the Israeli occupation forces during the genocide in Gaza. His wife, eight-month-old infant grandson, seven-year-old daughter, 16-year-old son, and nine other nephews and relatives were killed in an Israeli airstrike on the Nuseirat refugee camp on 25 October 2023, which also injured many of his other relatives.
On 15 December 2023, Al-Dahdouh and his cameraman Samer Abu Daqqa were hit by an Israeli missile while reporting near Haifa School in Khan Younis; Al-Dahdouh sustained serious injuries, and Abu Daqqa was killed. His eldest son, journalist Hamza Al-Dahdouh, was also killed by an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis on 7 January 2024. He became known as 'the Mountain of Gaza' and 'the Jacob of his era' for his patience, resilience, and determination to continue reporting despite these tragedies. Moreover, many institutions and newspapers named him Person of the Year during 2023 to 2024.
In 2024, Al-Dahdouh was awarded the International John Aubuchon Press Freedom Award by the National Press Club. He is also the recipient of the Peace Through Media Award (2013) and has received awards from Reporters Without Borders and Amnesty International, in addition to many more prestigious recognitions from countries around the world.
Chair
Dr. Dounia Mahlouly, Department of Media Studies, SOAS
Registration
This event is free to attend, but registration is required. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis.
