Amjad Juhjouh, a 28-year-old Palestinian journalist and editor at the Belgium-based European Institute for Training and Development (EUTD), which creates content for websites, and a writer at the pro-Hamas Palestine Now news agency, was killed in Israeli airstrike alongside his pregnant wife – journalist Wafaa Abu Dabaan – their son, and Juhjouh’s brother-in-law, journalist Rizq Abu Shakian, on July 6, 2024, according to media reports and people who spoke to CPJ.
Wael Jarwan, a media professor and EUTD team leader in Gaza, described Abu Dabaan and Juhjouh as dedicated hard-working professionals who maintained a clear separation between their personal and professional lives.
"They were very committed, and I had known them since they were students. They invited me to a training course they organized, which sparked our professional relationship. We later collaborated on several media projects," Jarwan said. He added that Abu Dabaan and Juhjouh were not just colleagues but like younger siblings to him.
"They struggled together, both in life and in work," said Jarwan.
CPJ emailed the Israel Defense Forces’ North America Media Desk in late September 2024, asking for comment on the killing of Juhjouh.
In an exchange that followed, the IDF asked CPJ for the journalists’ IDs and "relevant coordinates," which CPJ explained it could not provide due to research limitations. The IDF then said it could not fully address CPJ’s inquiry due to a lack of "sufficient details."
The IDF said it takes "all operationally feasible measures" to prevent harm to journalists and other civilians, asserting that "many" on CPJ’s list were Hamas members and therefore lawful targets, but did not name the journalists or provide evidence they were Hamas fighters.