Israeli police attacked a group of journalists outside Jerusalem’s Old City on Tuesday night, including a CNN producer who suffered a broken wrist in the violence.
Police also damaged photography equipment and seized memory cards from journalists outside the Lions Gate in the Old City who were covering Ramadan prayers.
On Tuesday, Muslim worshipers, who had been barred from praying at Al-Aqsa Mosque due to wartime regulations, gathered outside the Old City’s walls to perform Tarawih prayers during Ramadan. However, the police prevented them from praying and pushed them away. Worshipers moved to the streets in the nearby Wadi al-Joz area.
Police then moved the worshipers back to a location near the Old City Walls, but soon after, a police officer threw a stun grenade at the group. Two journalists were detained at the scene after police assaulted them and damaged their equipment. Several other journalists who were at the scene documenting the incident, including CNN senior producer Abir Salman, tried to intervene but were pushed aside.
After the two journalists were released, Salman and other journalists went to check on their colleagues. Police ordered the journalists to return. The footage shows the group following police instructions as a plainclothes officer (possibly representing a special police force) grabs Salman’s hand and twists it, breaking his wrist.
In a police statement released to Israeli reporters on Tuesday and shared with CNN, police accused reporters at the scene of disobeying orders and claimed they were “part of the mayhem.” The police statement further claimed that “they identified themselves as journalists only after being detained by police and were subsequently released.”
The Israeli Journalists Union condemned the police statement, calling it “factually incorrect.” The union called on the police commissioner to immediately suspend the officers involved and launch an internal investigation.
“Police officers attacked several journalists, including those from foreign news organizations, without provocation,” the group said. “Officers damaged work equipment, seized memory cards recording illegal activities, and left a CNN producer with broken bones.”
Neil Gonters, a member of the union that deals with violence against journalists, said police deliberately targeted journalists knowing full well that they were at the scene.
“Journalists are sometimes accidentally hit by police officers and others while on the job. That was not the case in this case. The police marked journalists as targets and attacked them,” Gonters said. “It was not a byproduct or a coincidence; it was a deliberate attack on journalists.”
The Foreign Press Association (FPA) also condemned the “unprovoked assault” against journalists. “The FPA calls on the Israeli police to take immediate action against the officers involved in this unprovoked assault and to act in the future to protect, not trample on, press freedom,” the organization said. (CNN Jerusalem correspondent Jeremy Diamond is on the FPA board.)
“None of this is acceptable,” the FPA said.
CNN has reached out to police for comment on the incident, but has not received a response.
In response to the attack on journalists, CNN issued the following statement: “On Tuesday evening, a CNN producer was among a group of journalists covering Muslim worshipers praying outside the Old City of Jerusalem during Ramadan. Police officers on the scene violently dispersed the crowd, which included many journalists. During this incident, police officers We are seeking accountability and accountability for this unprovoked assault and are pursuing this matter with the relevant authorities.As journalists, we abide by Home Front Command rules that do not allow police officers to assault journalists under any circumstances.”
