Yazan, the son of slain Palestinian journalist Samer Abu Daqqa, said that Israel deliberately assassinated his father and that the family plans to file a case before the International Criminal Court, Al-Jazeera reported.
Samer Abu Daqqa, a Palestinian journalist and a cameraman for Al-Jazeera channel in Gaza, was killed on Friday in an Israeli military strike in Khan Yunis, while covering the war in Gaza.
Abu Daqqa was targeted, along with Wael al-Dahdouh, a Palestinian journalist who lost most of his family in a recent Israeli airstrike, which targeted their home in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.
While al-Dahdouh managed to reach the hospital despite his injuries, Abu Daqqa was critically wounded and could not be evacuated.
Israeli forces refused to allow the evacuation of the badly wounded Palestinian journalist, leading, six hours later, to his death.
ISRAELI ARMY: We did not and will not intentionally target journalists, but shooting in an active area carries risks.
FOLLOW OUR LIVE BLOG:https://t.co/ecrtRu7aDZ pic.twitter.com/HAFyfJLe5g
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) December 16, 2023
‘Indescribable Feelings’
In a video interview with Al-Jazeera, Samer’s son, Yazan, said that it is difficult to describe his feelings when he learned that his father had been assassinated.
“He was a journalist and he was doing his job of conveying the truth, he was not doing anything that justified Israel’s decision to target him,” Yazan said.
Yazan told Al-Jazeera that his father called him the day before his death and asked him to take care of his brothers, as he did every day since the beginning of the war.
He also said that his father was loved by everybody and was known for his smile, adding that he was “a friend and a father” for him.
Yazan, son of AlJazeera’s Gaza cameraman Samer Abu Daqqa, speaking from Belgium says the family will file a lawsuit before the ICC.
‘I’m proud of my dad. He’s a martyr. Israeli forces deliberately targeted him while he was doing his job as a journalist.’ pic.twitter.com/6pr3svi3l2
— Arwa Ibrahim (@arwaib) December 15, 2023
‘Killers Must Be Held Accountable’
Yazan told Al-Jazeera that the family will never give up their rights and that they plan to file a case before the International Criminal Court to hold his father’s killers accountable.
Abu Daqqa’s son called on everyone to support this endeavor.
Samer Abu Daqqa, 45, was a father of three boys and a girl. He was a resident of the town of Abasan al-Kabira near Khan Yunis. He joined Al Jazeera in June 2004, where he worked as a cameraman.
(PC, AJA)
Recognizing patterns is one of the vital skills that ensures human survival. The IDF has shown over a number of decades, a pattern of behaviour towards journalists. And for that matter, anyone taking an interest in its activities – viz the USS Liberty. I say to Yazan and the rest of the Abu Daqqa family, my best wishes for your quest to bring justice to your father’s killers,and this pattern of behaviour should be raised before the ICC. Israel must be held accountable.