Canadian Reuters Photojournalist Resigns Over Gaza Journalist Deaths Coverage

Canadian photojournalist Valerie Zink resigned from Reuters after eight years, condemning the agency for its coverage of the Gaza conflict and accusing it of enabling Israel's systematic targeting and killing of journalists. Zink criticized Reuters for uncritically repeating Israeli claims, including baseless accusations that Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Anas al-Sharif was a Hamas operative, which she argued contributed to a dangerous smear campaign and justified attacks on journalists. She highlighted the killing of Al-Sharif and Reuters cameraman Hossam Al-Masri, who died in a double-tap strike on Nasser Hospital, describing such attacks as war crimes. Zink expressed deep shame and grief for having carried the Reuters press pass amid what she called a betrayal of journalists in Gaza. She further accused Western media outlets, including Reuters, of acting as conveyors of Israeli propaganda, sanitizing war crimes, dehumanizing victims, and abandoning ethical reporting standards. Her resignation draws attention to the unprecedented number of journalist deaths in Gaza since October 2023 and the complicity she sees in major media organizations for repeating Israeli narratives without verification.