At the panel titled “Gaza: The Litmus Test of Humanity”, organised by the Directorate of Communications, participants discussed the media coverage of the genocide in Gaza and the international reactions against Israel.
Head of Communications Duran, who made the opening speech of the panel, said that Israel has pursued its oppression and occupation in Palestinian lands for decades, trampling international law, conventions, and humanitarian values, and carrying out an all-out massacre.
The panel, moderated by TRT World’s Middle East correspondent Nizar Sadawi, featured Yusuf Özhan, Deputy Director-General and Editor-in-Chief of Anadolu Agency (AA); Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh, politician and lawyer; Paul Williams, Founder and Director of the “Blogging Theology” platform; and Paula Gil Leyva, President of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Spain.
In his address, Anadolu Agency Deputy Director-General and Editor-in-Chief Yusuf Özhan emphasised that AA has a strong network of correspondents in Gaza and has been conveying developments to the international arena in all their stark reality.
Underscoring the vital role journalists play in uncovering the truth and conveying the human suffering, Özhan pointed out that the Israeli army deliberately targets members of the press for this very reason.
He recalled that two of AA’s distinguished staff members were killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza, underlining that the brave journalists who continue to work on the ground remain the eyes and ears of the world.
He further underlined that while Israel employs famine as a weapon and wages an intensive propaganda campaign, Anadolu Agency is solely in pursuit of the truth and will continue to reflect it in the best possible way.
Özhan stated, “As Anadolu Agency, we are striving to record in the memory of conscience the events that could serve as evidence of genocide. To this end, we compiled the book "Evidence".
Emphasising that AA has been at the forefront of confronting the Israeli army's use of military equipment and exposing the Tel Aviv government's deployment of white phosphorus in Gaza, Özhan noted that AA correspondents are actively engaged in gathering evidence regarding the ongoing developments in Gaza.
Özhan pointed out that, particularly in recent weeks, photographs taken by Anadolu Agency (AA) photojournalists depicting starvation in Gaza have made headlines, drawing attention to the impact these images and stories have had on public opinion.
AA Deputy Director General and Editor-in-Chief Özhan said, "I believe that Palestine and the people of Gaza will ultimately prevail and that peace will be established in the region."
"Every hospital in Gaza has been either fully or partially destroyed"
President of Doctors Without Borders Spain, Paula Gil Leyva, stated that she was in Gaza in December 2024, where she witnessed firsthand Israel's daily bombardments.
Stating that Doctors Without Borders responds to emergencies in the region, Leyva emphasised that what she has witnessed in Gaza is unlike anything she has encountered before.
Leyva noted that they were working at Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza, which was severely overcrowded and under intense pressure, and added that the dire struggle of the people against starvation was thoroughly documented.
Leyva conveyed that numerous wounded individuals were brought to hospitals from the aid distribution points of the US and Israeli-backed "Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF)," while drawing attention to the critical shortage of medical supplies.
"Every hospital in Gaza has been either fully or partially destroyed," said Levya, adding, "This genocide is advancing more rapidly than anticipated. We cannot overlook the West Bank either."
"We see double standards at play"
Citing the report by the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, which concluded that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza, politician and lawyer Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh said, "Many of us had long been aware of this. Yet citizens of the world were being asked not to believe the evidence presented before our very eyes."
Emphasising that political will can change the situation and that this is the raison d’être of international law, Sheikh said, "We witness double standards at play. In fact, it is evident that Muslim lives are not being valued."
"Israel is committing genocide, and just like other countries, sanctions must be applied to it as well. Here, we see the inconsistent application of international law," said Sheikh, adding that Israel is committing the gravest crime under international law.
Sheikh emphasised the need for politicians who will uphold the rule of law and bring an end to this genocide, stating, "Otherwise, future perpetrators of war crimes will not be deterred from committing the same acts. We have made a promise to our children that genocide will never take place again.'"
"Your country’s President (Recep Tayyip Erdoğan) has stated that the world is bigger than five, and indeed it is, and rightly so. Reforms must be made on this matter." noted politician and lawyer Sheikh.
"The old Western order that has lost its credibility"
Founder and Director of the ‘Blogging Theology’ platform, Paul Williams, remarked, "The weaponisation of the Old Testament in Israel is a serious concern."
Williams emphasised the need to discuss the weaponisation and distortion of theology to legitimise genocide, ethnic cleansing, and the seizure of Palestinians' lands in the West Bank.
Noting that everything is currently changing and transforming, Williams said, "For this reason, Muslims, Christians, and others of goodwill must unite to form alliances, educate one another, and look beyond the lies that have been propagated about the old Western order that has lost its credibility."
