"Everything You Can Imagine, We Do Not Have": A Q&A with Gaza-Based Journalist Sameh A. Habeeb

By Zahra Hankir, Indypendent. Posted January 8, 2009.

Imagine a life with no Internet. No power. No food. Confined to your house with no work. I spend a lot of time on my bed covering myself with blankets because it is so cold. There is no heating. I think. I think. I think.

ZH: How have you managed to carry on work as a journalist, balancing demands of the job while keeping yourself and your family safe?

SAH: It is too hazardous to go out whenever I want to. I sometimes go out to take photos, but I'm generally scared to go out because they [the Israelis] restrict all kinds of journalism.

As for the things I do, I have my laptop that I charge from time to time. I visit friends who have power in other areas. I sometimes go some kilometers away to get power.

I charge the laptop and then I call friends to get their news. I have sources in various areas. I call doctors to learn of what is happening in the hospitals. I listen to the radio stations. I have an amalgam of sources, really. And I make sure to write and report them at the end of the day. I have my own sources, as I previously worked in journalism for one year, and have sources in the humanitarian field and in the media world, especially with Ramattan.

ZH: How has the Israeli military treated journalists?

SAH: Since November 1, 2008, Israel was not allowing journalists to go into Gaza, or any international organization officers. It was totally closed, and this is part of the Israeli media blackout. We have a huge media blackout in our work, in addition to conditions of panic and fear. We don't have the freedom to report and write. We are not being accessed by many international media outlets. People have tried to call many times but have not been getting through; this shows that Israel has destroyed part of the telecommunication for mobiles. Only landlines are working. Besides, we don't have access to Internet, which is crucial.

ZH: Do you feel that there is a lot of pressure on local journalists to get the truth out?

SAH: I feel that my country needs national human resources. I don't depend on other media sources, I have my own way. Yes, it's almost like a burden to report in such harsh conditions. But I still do it. I report for the people.

ZH: How do the Palestinians perceive the response of the Arab states?

SAH: Perceptions are generally still the same. We're not too aware of what is happening around us [in the Arab world]. But Palestinians do not depend on outside powers. Some here do feel that the Arabs played a part in besieging Gaza, specifically Egypt, and the issue of the tunnels and the Rafah Crossing, which is still closed and [Mubarak] is not opening it. Also, there are other Arab regimes that are not helping the Palestinians and are not working enough. It is clear that the Palestinians were frustrated with Arab countries, particularly at the beginning of this war, when they [the Arab nations] could not even agree or set a time for when to hold an emergency Arab summit.

ZH: How have things changed since the ground operation began?

SAH: Before now, we thought that military operation would end by Sunday. Now it is harder for us to adapt to the new reality [the ground invasion]. We are confined to our houses, are not able to go to the market to bring supplies, we have no access to banks. All our assets are being paralyzed by this situation.

ZH: Would you say Israel is targeting Hamas areas specifically?

SAH: No. Hamas militants are still firing rockets! That is still going on. The number of those innocent civilians who have died debunks arguments that the Israeli army is not allowing civilians to be casualties in the Gaza strip. We can tell what type of rockets they are using, and prohibited weapons. There are cluster bombs. The artillery shells were exploding before reaching the ground.

ZH: What media are you following, if any?

SAH: While we had power, I was following CNN, but I knew that it is not so neutral. As for now, we only have local radio stations.

ZH: Would you say that this is genocide?

SAH: Yes. The big number of victims indicates that this is genocide. Israel says it is attacking Hamas, but on the ground, we are seeing that most of those killed are civilians. The world has to realize and has to know that Israel is not doing as it says -- fighting Hamas and terror -- and that this is part of the media blackout of Israel. As the days pass, the crisis will become much worse. More people will have less access to basic needs.

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