Palestinian journalist’s Courage Awards rescinded after protest by neoconservatives
The International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) revoked the 2024 Courage in Journalism Award conferred on Palestinian Journalist Maha Hussaini after the right-wing and neoconservative groups and publications in the United States accused her of being a “Hamas sympathizer” and “anti-semite”
The International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) revoked the 2024 Courage in Journalism Award conferred on Palestinian Journalist Maha Hussaini after the right-wing and neoconservative groups and publications in the United States accused her of being a “Hamas sympathizer” and “anti-semite”.
The International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) had conferred the 2024 Courage in Journalism Award on Maha Hussaini on June 10, 2024 for her ground reporting from Gaza.
The IWMF had recognized Hussaini as one of the four recipients of its Courage in Journalism Awards, which recognizes exceptional courage in reporting.
The organisation however rescinded the award conferred upon her under pressure by right-wing neoconservative groups that accused her of being ‘Hamas sympathizer’ and ‘anti-semite’ based on her social media posts.
“Within the last 24 hours, the IWMF learned of comments made by Maha Hussaini in past years that contradict the values of our organization. As a result, we have rescinded the Courage in Journalism Award that was previously given to her”, the organization said in a statement on June 19.
Maha Hussaini remains firm
Maha Hussaini however remains firm and more determined in her mission, and vows the cancellation of the courage awards won't dissuade her from imparting her duties.
“I wouldn’t have won The International Women’s Media Foundation (@IWMF)’s Courage in Journalism Award 2024 this June if I hadn’t been on the ground reporting events and exposing Israeli flagrant violations under perilous conditions, all while being systematically attacked by supporters of the perpetrators”, she wrote on social media platform X.
“Winning a prize for “courage” means being subjected to attacks and choosing to continue your work regardless. However, I regret to say that the very organization that recognized these perilous conditions and awarded me the prize succumbed to pressure and chose to act contrary to courage; they rescinded the award in a decision that would put my life at risk”, she continued.
Writing for Middle East Eye, Hussaini called out the organisation’s decision and the pro-Israeli groups that ran the smear campaign against her.
Hussaini also said she has no regret about her social media posts used by the IWMF as pretext to rescind the awards.
“I have no regrets about any posts or past comments that led to the rescinding of my award and I will not stop expressing my views. Before becoming a journalist, I was a Palestinian living under military occupation and a strangling blockade. Today, I am enduring an internationally recognised genocide in Gaza”, she wrote.
Hussaini also wrote she did not choose journalism as a profession but became a journalist after recognising the extent to which the world overlooks Palestinian suffering and opts to conform to Israeli pressures, especially at a time when Israel bans international journalists from entering the Gaza Strip to objectively report on the war.
“Instead of acknowledging the threats faced by Palestinian journalists and contributing to their protection, the withdrawal of awards from Palestinian reporters in Gaza, where dozens of journalists have already been killed by Israeli forces, risks making them even bigger targets”, she wrote.
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