Palestinian photojournalist Motaz Azaiza joined the Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q) community on February 10 for a candid conversation about his work. As a distinguished speaker of the Rawabet Conference Series – Journalism in the Global South: Expanding Epistemological Frameworks, Azaiza shared his experience covering Gaza.
“I didn’t do anything special,” he said. “Just was myself, showing the world the real thing at the right time.”
The award-winning Azaiza has been covering Israeli attacks on Gaza since 2017 but gained international recognition for his on-the-ground reporting during the recent Israel-Hamas War.
As a photojournalist in Gaza, Azaiza was used to working under the constant threat of being killed. Yet, he was still deeply affected by, albeit understanding of, the fear fellow Palestinians had towards him after journalists became a clear target of the Israeli attacks.
Despite the challenges and emotional toll the war had on him, Azaiza remained committed to his work, based on his conviction that photography is one of the few tools people in Gaza have to fight back.
Beyond documenting the suffering and resilience of Palestinians, Azaiza’s work contributes to mobilizing humanitarian aid, collecting donations, and saving the lives of Palestinians injured during the Israeli attacks.
Among the hundreds of photos Azaiza has captured, one stood out. ‘Seeing Her Through My Camera,’ named one of TIME’s top 10 photos of 2023, told the story of a young girl stuck under rubble after her house was bombed by Israeli airstrikes. Revealing the devastation to an international audience allowed the girl to get treatment in the U.S. After undergoing 67 surgeries on her foot, she started to walk again.
The international reach of Azaiza’s work made him an honored guest at events worldwide. He gave talks in the U.S. and U.K. and visited Pro-Palestinian marches and protests, including those at Columbia University.
And while his travels positively reshaped his perceptions of international support for Palestine, he admitted that he expected the world would join Palestine in its intifada against Israel’s occupation.
Still, a lot has been achieved, Azaiza emphasized several times during his talk. The money was donated, the lives of injured people were saved, and the international support of Palestine grew. Notwithstanding these encouraging outcomes, Azaiza remains firm that action must continue and urges the world not to stop fighting for Palestine.
