As Israeli forces continue their attack on Gaza, people are turning to social media for coverage and support.
By Onnie Stone
Social media is exposing people everywhere to the daily tragedies in Gaza.
Civilians stuck in Gaza are using social media to document their lives amidst Israeli attacks. This has made social media a hub for news from Palestine.
TikTok and Instagram are flooded with first-hand accounts of the devastation in Gaza. Many videos contain graphic content of injured and dead Palestinians.
AP Photojournalist Fatima Shbair shares photos of people being pulled from wreckage. One photo depicts a group of women crying, a child laying dead at their feet.
“Absolutely harrowing images,” Instagram user @aoifecaseyfineart commented. “How do you cope witnessing this it must be unthinkable.”
Other posts compare neighborhoods before and after Israeli airstrikes turned buildings to rubble.
A TikTok video posted by @c4news on Oct. 26 shows satellite images from before and after 17 days of bombing. Many commenters shared only one word, “heartbreaking.”
Motaz Azaiza has amassed a following of 12.6 million people on Instagram. A photographer turned journalist, he shares photos and videos on Instagram daily.
“No one chose his life,” Azaiza wrote under a photo of himself on an Oct. 22 Instagram post.
“Every moment I capture is for you, for the world to take action,” Azaiza says in a video posted by @urnwausa on Instagram.
United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, is a non-profit that provides aid to Palestinian refugees. The video promotes a UNRWA fundraiser made to send relief to Gaza.
These journalists continue to share what Palastinians are enduring despite their own struggles. People in Gaza are without food, clean water, and electricity. Hospitals are crowded and unable to properly treat their patients.
Because of social media, people are witnessing heart-wrenching stories, photos, and pleas for action. For many, it is hard to look away from this crisis. People feel connected to the stories of journalists in Gaza. Social media has been crucial in ensuring the world remains aware of the ongoing strife in Palestine
