The sensational Palestinian photojournalist Motaz Azaiza has left the war-torn Gaza strip for personal safety. He was notably one of the last remaining and well-known journalists documenting the Israel-Hamas war while risking his life.
After spending 108 days covering the Israeli genocidal strikes on Palestinian civilians, Azaiza announced on Tuesday, January 23, that he would have to evacuate the place for obvious reasons.
“This is the last time you all will be seeing me with this heavy and stinky (press) vest,” he told his followers in a video on X.
“I have decided to evacuate today. I am sorry, but in Sha Allah (God willing), soon I may come back and build Gaza again,” he expressed with concern. Later, Motaz was seen bidding farewell to a group of his colleagues after removing his vest.
Who is Azaiza?
Azaiza is a famous travel influencer who was forced to turn into a journalist because of the war situation in his home region. Since the recent Israel-Hamas war began, he has been active on social media platforms, revealing its consequences for civilians in Gaza.
From videos of him comforting and rushing children to the hospital in an ambulance to footage showing the scale of destruction, the 24-year-old has been praised for his posts on social media showing what was happening in Gaza. He has amassed over 19 million followers on all social media platforms.
Remarkably, one of Azaiza’s photographs, titled ‘Seeing Her Through My Camera’, was among Time’s top 10 photos of 2023. It showed a young girl stuck under the debris at the Al Nusairat refugee camp after an Israeli airstrike.
Furthermore, he also documented the killing of his media colleagues. Earlier this month, he posted a group picture with his two friends. “I lost two more of my colleagues and friends in an Israeli airstrike,” he wrote.
According to Al Jazeera, 15 members of Azaiza’s family have been killed, most of them women and children.
The Committee to Protect Journalists has said that 83 journalists and media workers have been killed in the war as of Monday, including 76 Palestinians, four Israelis, and three Lebanese.
