Reporters Without Borders (RSF) removed at least two individuals from its database of Palestinian media workers killed during the October 7 War after those individuals were identified as members of armed militant organizations, according to findings first published by HonestReporting on Wednesday and verified by The Jerusalem Post.
RSF removed two Gaza figures from journalist database after terror links identified
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) removed at least two individuals from its database of Palestinian media workers killed during the October 7 War after those individuals were identified as members of armed militant organizations, according to findings first published by HonestReporting on Wednesday and verified by The Jerusalem Post.
HonestReporting recorded 68 names on RSF's media abuses Barometer on July 20. By August 4, the list had dropped to 67. The name no longer present was Mohammad Jarghoun, who on July 1 was announced by the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades — the military wing of Hamas — as a member of its Rafah Brigade's Martyr Muhammad Abu Harb Battalion.
By June 11, RSF had also removed Jarghoun's name from a running article profiling journalists 'killed in connection with their work.' His earlier description on the page read: 'This 23-year-old reporter working for the Smart Media production company was killed by Israeli fire while covering fighting near the Rafah crossing point in the south of the Gaza Strip on 7 October [2023].'
Since June 10, RSF also removed Mohamed Nasr Abu Huwaidi from the same article. RSF had previously described Huwaidi as 'clearly identifiable by his press vest when he was killed by an Israeli bombardment on 23 December in the Chajaya district, in eastern Gaza City, where he had gone to film the aftermath of an Israeli strike.' Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, identified Huwaidi as a commander in its Central Military Media Unit. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) found that Huwaidi had participated in combat and had already removed him from its own database.
Following the removals, an amendment to RSF's methodology appeared at the bottom of the article after June 10. RSF stated in that note that it 'updates this registry on an ongoing basis as new information becomes available concerning journalists killed since October 7, 2023,' and that 'the organization applies a rigorous methodology of data collection and fact-checking despite severe operational constraints, including the continued lack of independent access to the Gaza Strip and parts of southern Lebanon.'
RSF states on its Barometer page that individuals are listed only if RSF has established that their death or imprisonment was 'linked to their journalistic activity' and not if they were killed or imprisoned for reasons unrelated to their work.
In a preliminary audit of the 67 remaining names, HonestReporting said at least 26.86 percent have what it described as terrorist ties: three have had martyr notices issued by militant organizations, three have been linked to participation in hostilities through obituaries and open-source material, four were employed by outlets described as terrorist-affiliated, eight were alleged by the Israel Defense Forces to be terrorists, and one was affiliated with an outlet of disputed terrorist affiliation.
HonestReporting also noted that between May 2025 and August 4, RSF was cited in 40 articles published by 13 major Western English-language news outlets on the subject of the IDF targeting journalists. HonestReporting called on RSF to publicly explain why it altered its records and withdrew ICC complaints that featured individuals identified as terrorists. The Jerusalem Post said it reached out to RSF for comment.
- The source does not state whether RSF responded to The Jerusalem Post's request for comment.
- The source does not state when exactly RSF removed Jarghoun from the Barometer count, only that the change was observed between July 20 and August 4.
- The source does not state RSF's specific reasoning for each individual removal beyond the general methodology note.
- The source does not state how many individuals RSF has removed from its database in total since October 7, 2023.
- The source does not state the basis or current status of the ICC complaints mentioned in connection with RSF.
- The source does not state which specific Western news outlets cited RSF in the 40 articles referenced by HonestReporting.
Read the original at The Jerusalem Post