Gaza / PNN /

 Moaz Al-Salhi: Photojournalist Documents War and Resilience Amid Personal Struggles

Moaz Al-Salhi, a photojournalist from the Bureij refugee camp in Gaza, has spent years covering the Israeli Palestinian conflicts, capturing the destruction and human suffering that are part of daily life in the besieged territory.

His journalistic career began during the 2012 escalation and continued through the 2014 war and subsequent conflicts, each leaving a profound impact on the fragile Gaza Strip and leaving lasting emotional and psychological scars on Al-Salhi himself.

Despite his professional dedication, Al-Salhi faces a serious personal challenge. In 2022, doctors diagnosed him with a chronic cancer called Bruns disease, which affects the entire digestive system and requires specialized treatment.

Al-Salhi said, “My first treatment session was scheduled for 8 October 2023 at a hospital in Israel, but the war prevented me from going.”

Even as his health deteriorated, he continued covering events, at times carrying his treatment IV while photographing frontline scenes, he told a PNN reporter in Gaza.

Speaking about his own condition and the situation for patients with serious chronic illnesses in Gaza, Al-Salhi added: “I have seen cases far worse than mine. What I want people to understand, especially our community in Gaza, is that despite the pain, disease, and blockade, we continue to live, reconcile with ourselves first and then with each other, and believe there is life worth living here.” He extends this message to the wider world, affirming that resilience and hope exist even in the harshest conditions.

After returning from the field, Al-Salhi sits with hospital reports and medical files regarding his condition, hopeful that international and humanitarian institutions in journalism and healthcare will provide him and other patients the opportunity to receive proper treatment.

During his work, Al-Salhi has witnessed extreme hardship and injustice, and these scenes have sometimes become historic moments for him. He recalls working alongside colleagues to provide humanitarian assistance—putting cameras aside to help doctors and nurses treat dozens of casualties from airstrikes on a café, believing in the importance of life and humanity.

Gaza has long been one of the world’s most dangerous places for journalists. The recent devastating war has killed at least 250 media workers since 2023, while dozens more have been injured or forced to suspend reporting temporarily.

Al-Salhi faces dangerous working conditions on the frontlines, navigating bombings and chaos with his equipment and minimal protection, often lacking basic necessities, yet he continues documenting life in Gaza.

His work exemplifies courage and dedication. In collaboration with Anadolu Agency, Al-Salhi has covered wars and daily struggles, capturing images that tell stories of survival, loss, and hope.

Outside his professional life, he dreams of a normal life with his children. He said, “There is hope to travel for treatment, continue my work, and live with my children. We keep dreaming that tomorrow, God willing, will be a better day.”

In his free time, Al-Salhi sits with his children, teaching them about photography and reviewing his images with them, believing in the importance of passing on journalistic knowledge to the next generation.

Despite ongoing dangers—even after announcements of ceasefires that were not fully enforced—he sometimes roams through rubble and destroyed buildings, interacting with children and adults, photographing resilience and life in Gaza, hoping to awaken the world, convinced that a single image can speak louder than thousands of words.

Many media workers in Gaza, like Al-Salhi, face psychological trauma, lack of medical support, and constant threats of detention or harassment. Despite these risks, journalists continue to document reality, providing the world with critical information from the heart of Gaza. Their work underscores the courage and resilience required to report from one of the planet’s most volatile regions.

Al-Salhi’s story is a testament to personal resilience and to the courage of journalists in Gaza, who risk their lives to report from one of the most unstable areas on Earth.

This story was produced under the Qarib programme, implemented by the French Media Development Agency (CFI) in partnership with and funded by the French Agency for International Cooperation (AFD).