Establishment of a Special Unit to Justify the Killing of Journalists in the Israeli Army

TEHRAN (Defapress) - The Israeli regime's army, following the "Al-Aqsa Storm" operation on October 7, 2023, by intensifying military operations and due to the extremely high civilian casualties, particularly among journalists and media activists in the Gaza Strip, faced widespread international criticism. Reports published by the Hebrew magazine "+972" and the website "Sikha Mekomit" clearly show that a unit called the "Legitimation Cell" has been formed within the Israeli army.

According to received news and reports, this newly established unit in the Zionist regime's army operates to justify the killing of journalists and media activists in Gaza by collecting and fabricating information to link them to Hamas or other Palestinian Resistance groups.

Objectives of Forming This Special Unit

The formation of this unit is part of the Zionist regime's broader strategy for managing public perception, improving Israel's image, reducing international pressures, and ensuring continued American support through media warfare. Therefore, the main objectives of forming and operating this unit include "legitimizing military actions," "ensuring international support," and "media warfare."

In the area of "legitimizing military actions," it must be said that the Zionist regime's army, by linking killed journalists to Resistance groups, attempts to portray these killings as "inevitable war incidents" or "legitimate defensive actions."

In the context of "ensuring international support," it should be said that the Israeli regime's army, by establishing this special unit, seeks to transmit the collected information from the people of Gaza, journalists, and media activists to America and other key allies to pave the way for maintaining political and military support for Israel, especially against human rights criticisms.

In the "media warfare" section, it should also be noted that the Zionist regime, through the creation of this special unit, seeks to take control of the global media narrative by presenting information that introduces the victims as security threats. Meanwhile, intelligence sources have revealed that this unit operates more with propaganda motives rather than security ones and focuses on producing narratives that neutralize criticisms.

Operational Methods

The "Legitimation Cell" uses various methods to achieve its goals, among which are "targeted information gathering," "fabrication and distortion of information," "publication of targeted reports," and "cooperation with aligned media."

In the area of "targeted information gathering," it should be said that this unit collects personal and professional information of journalists through cyber surveillance, wiretapping, and intelligence sources. This information will later be made available to the Zionist regime's army and assassination units for targeting and eliminating journalists and media activists.

In the "fabrication and distortion of information" section, it should also be noted that the Zionist regime's army is strongly pursuing the production of fake evidence or distorted information to link journalists to Hamas or Islamic Jihad. This information, in a way, grants the Israeli regime's army the necessary permits to kill Palestinian or non-Palestinian journalists present in the Gaza Strip.

In the context of "publication of targeted reports," it should be said that the Zionist regime's army presents the information collected from various events and incidents of the Gaza war in the form of a series of regular reports to international institutions, especially America, to justify its military actions during the Gaza war.

Finally, in the area of "cooperation with aligned media," we must point out this very important issue that this newly established special unit in the Zionist regime's army has close, continuous, and targeted cooperation with some Western and Israeli media to publish the desired narratives. Because the Israeli army justifies many of its killings and massacres during the printing and publication of these very narratives.

Consequences

The formation of this unit has widespread consequences in the areas of human rights, media, and international relations, among which we can mention "human rights violations," "weakening of press freedom," "increase in international criticisms," and "impact on diplomatic relations."

In the area of "human rights violations," it should be said that the targeted killing of journalists is a clear violation of the Geneva Conventions and international laws that mandate the protection of civilians, including media personnel. From the beginning of the Gaza war until August 2025, more than 238 journalists and media activists have been killed and hundreds have been wounded.

In the "weakening of press freedom" section, it should also be said that these actions have led to the restriction of the media activity environment in Gaza and have faced independent reporting with very serious dangers. Because, as we have seen in the past two years, many journalists and media activists have not been able to properly cover the news and events of the Gaza war due to the actions of the Zionist regime's army, and cannot cover and broadcast the war news as they wish.

In the context of "increase in international criticisms," it should also be noted that institutions such as Reporters Without Borders, the United Nations, and Amnesty International have condemned these actions as war crimes. Reporters Without Borders, in a statement, announced that the deliberate targeting of journalists and the very high number of their killings, which has been unprecedented in the history of the world's wars, is a "flagrant violation of human rights."

Finally, in the area of "impact on diplomatic relations," it should be said that such actions lead to a reduction or weakening of support from some Western allies for the Zionist regime. Especially since, during the two years since the beginning of the Gaza war, global public opinion has become much more sensitive to human rights violations by the Israeli regime.

International Reactions

Global reactions to the establishment of the special unit for justifying the killing of journalists in the Zionist army have also been diverse. These reactions have been at four levels: "human rights organizations," "the United Nations," "Western countries," and "independent media."

At the level of "human rights organizations," Reporters Without Borders and Amnesty International have called for independent investigations into the killing of journalists and the activities of this unit.

Meanwhile, regarding the extent of reactions at the "United Nations" level, it should be said that the UN Special Rapporteur on Palestine has described these actions as "an attempt at media cleansing" and has called for Israel to be held accountable.

In the area of "Western countries," it should be said that America has not yet shown an official reaction to these reports, but internal pressures from human rights groups to reconsider unconditional support for Israel have increased.

But "independent media" have played a very important role in this campaign. Social media activists such as X have played a significant role in exposing these actions and have called for an end to the targeting of journalists.

Conclusion

Finally, the formation of the special unit for justifying the killing of journalists in the Zionist regime's army is an example of systematic efforts to manage public perception in the face of war crimes. This action is not only a clear violation of international laws but also endangers press freedom and the right to access information.