American Jeremy Loffredo was one of five journalists reportedly detained by the Israel Defense Forces on 9 October. He’s reportedly charged with endangering national security and aiding and sharing information with the enemy, apparently because of his reporting on Iranian strikes.
The case requires the immediate attention of American officials (Loffredo has reportedly been released from custody but is barred from leaving Israel as authorities try to build their case). But, no matter what direction it takes, it should serve to highlight the plight of dozens of Palestinian journalists who are being held incommunicado in Israeli prisons.
Loffredo’s American citizenship makes it more likely – but by no means guaranteed – that the Biden administration might actually care that he’s being detained. After all, Joe Biden was eager to claim credit for the release of the journalists Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva, who were held in Russian prison on bogus charges.
If Israel’s theory is that reporters illegally share information with the enemy whenever the enemy reads the news, that could criminalize a whole lot of journalism. If Israel has proof that Loffredo did something more nefarious than that, it should say so, and be specific. The Dissenter reports that several more mainstream journalists reported similar information and footage to Loffredo and weren’t charged – if so, why was a particularly adversarial journalist singled out?
This is how Israel treats journalists. The fact that Israel detained an American journalist, who are protected by the way, and that this is barely getting attention in America is scary.
It’s also how they treat humanitarian aid workers, and peacekeepers, and children.
I think at this point, you could just say they’re race supremacists who hate all the non-zionists.