Motaz Azaiza

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Motaz Azaiza
معتز هلال عزايزة‎
Born
Motaz Hilal Azaiza

(1999-01-30) 30 January 1999 (age 25)
Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip
NationalityPalestinian
Alma materAl-Azhar University
OccupationPhotojournalist
Years active2014–present
Employer UNRWA
Known forDocumenting the Gaza–Israel conflict on social media

Motaz Hilal Azaiza (Arabic: معتز هلال عزايزة; born (1999-01-30)30 January 1999)[1] is a Palestinian photojournalist from Gaza.[2][3][4][5] He is known for covering the Israel–Hamas war, drawing a large social media following. In 2023, he was named Man of the Year by GQ Middle East and one of his photos, showing a girl trapped in rubble from an Israeli air strike, was named one of Time's top 10 photos of 2023, and was featured on Time's list of the 100 most influential people of 2024.

Early life and education

Azaiza was raised in the Deir al-Balah Camp in the Israeli-occupied Gaza Strip.[5] He attended Al-Azhar University in Gaza, graduating in 2021 with a degree in English studies.[5] As of 2023, he was employed by UNRWA.[6]

Career

See also: History of Palestinian journalism

Prior to the Israel–Hamas war, Azaiza's online posts mostly focused on photographing daily life in his native Gaza Strip.[3][5] He told The Guardian he did not intend to become a war journalist and wished "people knew me for my art, I wanted to capture the beauty of my people".[7] His dream was to become a travel photographer according to Grazia UK, but he could not yet afford the visa expenses.[8] Although he covered the 2014 Gaza War and the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis, his social media accounts did not gain much attention at the time.[5] There are few foreign journalists in the Gaza Strip due to Israel and Egypt denying them access to the territory, which has led to Azaiza becoming a key reporter on the ground in Gaza.[9]

Before the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, Azaiza's profile on Instagram had approximately 25,000 followers.[5][9] On 13 October, his Instagram account was restricted, but access was restored the following day.[10] His follower count had increased to one million by 17 October,[11] nine million by October 30,[3] 12.5 million by November 3,[9] and 13 million by November 7.[5] As of 27 December, Azaiza's Instagram profile had 17.5 million followers,[12] with the number reaching over 18 million by January 2024.[13]

In November 2023, GQ Middle East named him as their Man of the Year, with editor Ahmad Ali Swaid stating that "he reminds us that no matter who we are or where we're from, it's us – ordinary people, men, and women – who have the power to enact that very change that we want to see."[14][15]

Azaiza's photograph, "Seeing Her Through My Camera," part of his extensive coverage of Gaza during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war, was listed among Time's top 10 photos of 2023. In late October, following an Israeli airstrike, Azaiza used a low shutter speed on his camera to capture the moment, revealing a young girl trapped under rubble at the Al Nusairat refugee camp. This technique allowed him to witness her in the darkness where the naked eye couldn't confirm her condition before a Civil Defense rescue worker's light illuminated her face.[16]

In January 2024, Azaiza appeared on Mehdi Hasan's final show with MSNBC to discuss the dangers of reporting from Gaza under Israel's bombardment.[17] Later that month, after 108 days of reporting, Azaiza and some of his family evacuated to Egypt and then Doha, Qatar via Al-Arish Airport, their first time on a plane.[18] Azaiza subsequently began meeting with ministers, diplomats, and media figures to share his accounts, frustrated that his attempts to broadcast what was happening in Gaza had not changed things.[7]

On his first civilian flight, Azaiza flew to Istanbul on 26 February 2024, beginning his travels to "show, tell and speak more".[19] The following day, he accepted his 2023 TRT World Citizen Award.[20] He then went to Geneva, Switzerland on 8 March for the FIFDH, appearing on a panel with Farah Nabulsi and Mohamed Jabaly at the premiere of Jabaly's film Life is Beautiful.[21]

In April 2024, Azaiza was featured on Time's list of the 100 most influential people of 2024.[22]

Personal life

On 11 October 2023, at least 15 of Azaiza's relatives were killed in an Israeli airstrike on the Deir al-Balah Camp, shortly after the outbreak of the 2023 Israel–Hamas war.[11][23]

In a February 2024 interview with The Guardian, Azaiza mentioned the traumatic flashbacks and feelings of guilt and hopelessness he experienced after leaving Gaza.[7]

See also

References

  1. ^ Al-Hlou, Yousur (19 November 2023). "The War in Gaza Is Also Unfolding on Instagram". New York Times. Archived from the original on 20 November 2023. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  2. ^ Khadder, Kareem; Salman, Abeer; Saifi, Zeena (6 November 2023). "Gaza's communications blackout makes it difficult to "show the world what is happening," journalists say". CNN. Archived from the original on 6 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  3. ^ a b c "5 Doctors and Journalists Playing Vital Roles in Gaza's Humanitarian Crisis". Vogue Arabia. 30 October 2023. Archived from the original on 12 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  4. ^ Bulos, Nabih (29 October 2023). "New views of destruction emerge as 36-hour Gaza communication blackout lifts". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Abed, Abubaker (7 November 2023). "Motaz Azaiza: Gaza's window to the world". The New Arab. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  6. ^ "Motaz Azaiza becomes Gaza's pivotal digital journalist". MENAFN. 24 October 2023. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  7. ^ a b c Begum, Thaslima (16 February 2024). "Photojournalist Motaz Azaiza: 'The ghosts of Gaza follow me everywhere'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 19 February 2024. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
  8. ^ Aspinall, Georgia (20 February 2024). "Motaz Azaiza: 'The Worst Things I've Seen, I Don't Photograph'". Grazia UK. Archived from the original on 20 February 2024. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
  9. ^ a b c Abbruzzese, Jason; Ingram, David; Salam, Yasmine (3 November 2023). "On Instagram, Palestinian journalists and digital creators documenting Gaza strikes see surge in followers". NBC News. Archived from the original on 16 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  10. ^ Piper, Ernie (24 October 2023). "A bombing in Gaza killed an influencer's family—Instagram responded by suspending his account". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 31 October 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  11. ^ a b Amer, Ruwaida; Alsaafin, Linah; Amer, Ruwaida (17 October 2023). "Surrounded by death, Gaza content creators fight to get the truth out". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 8 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  12. ^ "Guerre à Gaza : Motaz Azaiza, ce journaliste palestinien qui porte la douleur de son peuple". La Croix (in French). 27 December 2023. ISSN 0242-6056. Archived from the original on 15 January 2024. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  13. ^ Kaur, Harmeet (19 January 2024). "Violence in Gaza turned these everyday Palestinians into chroniclers of war". CNN. Archived from the original on 5 February 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  14. ^ Monaghan, Becca (24 November 2023). "GQ honours Palestinian journalist Motaz Azaiza as Man of the Year | indy100". www.indy100.com. Archived from the original on 24 November 2023. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  15. ^ Swaid, Ahmad (23 November 2023). "Motaz Azaiza is Our 2023 'Man Of The Year'". GQ Middle East. Archived from the original on 1 December 2023. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  16. ^ "TIME's Top 10 Photos of 2023". TIME. 28 December 2023. Archived from the original on 16 January 2024. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  17. ^ Bauder, David (8 January 2024). "MSNBC's Mehdi Hasan quits rather than accept demotion at news network". ABC News. Archived from the original on 9 January 2024. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  18. ^ "Prominent journalist Motaz Azaiza evacuates Gaza after 108 days of Israeli onslaught". Arab News. 23 January 2024. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  19. ^ Motaz Azaiza (26 February 2024). "Reel". Archived from the original on 26 February 2024. Retrieved 26 February 2024 – via Instagram.
  20. ^ "'No happiness' for Palestinian photojournalist Motaz Azaiza as he wins citizen journalism award amid Gaza war". The New Arab. 28 February 2024. Archived from the original on 28 February 2024. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  21. ^ "FIFDH unveils the programme for its 22nd edition". FIFDH. 14 February 2024. Archived from the original on 8 March 2024. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  22. ^ Serhan, Yasmeen (17 April 2024). "Motaz Azaiza Is on the 2024 TIME100 List". Time. Archived from the original on 18 April 2024. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  23. ^ Simões, Tiago (30 October 2023). "Motaz Azaiza - O jornalista que ganhou 10 milhões de seguidores a mostrar a realidade nua e crua de Gaza". Nova Gente (in European Portuguese). Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.

External links

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