Washington DC - Media workers gathered outside National Press Foundation's awards dinner on Thursday in a silent vigil to honor the hundreds of Palestinian journalists murdered by Israel over the last year and a half.

Candles burned in white paper bags bearing the names of slain Palestinian journalists as a Palestinian flag fluttered over a sign reading "Best in Press 200+ Murdered Palestinian Journalists." Participants handed out flyers calling on dinner attendees to take action in solidarity with fellow journalists under threat.

The vigil – organized by the Liberation Lens DC collective of photographers, videographers, and media workers – took place outside the Ritz-Carlton in Washington DC, site of the annual awards event.

Israel has been accused of directly targeting journalists in Gaza. Al Jazeera reported that Israel killed at least 217 journalists and media workers in the territory between October 27, 2023, and December 25, 2024.

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The Committee to Protect Journalists issued a report last week condemning the "unprecedented number of journalists and media workers killed in the Israel-Gaza war."

Journalists in Gaza have called for international solidarity to stop the brutal assault on the Palestinian people and those risking their lives to document the atrocities.

"Despite facing the same Israeli brutality as their families and communities – manufactured starvation, the destruction of their homes, mass displacement, incessant bombings, drone strikes, and sniper attacks, disease outbreaks, and the resulting trauma – Palestinian journalists refuse Israeli intimidation and silencing. They have insisted on documenting Palestinian stories and their unwavering insistence on life," a photojournalist from Liberation Lens DC said in a press release ahead of the gathering.

"That international communities know at all of the genocide is because of their journalistic resolve, even though press vests mark them as Israeli targets," the photojournalist added.