Gaza Photojournalist Motaz Azaiza Says He Withheld Hostage Footage to Avoid Endangering Civilians: 'Doing My Job'

Motaz Azaiza, a 27-year-old photojournalist from Gaza who has received international attention — including a spot on the Time100 list and reports of a Nobel Peace Prize nomination — has publicly denied claims that he concealed footage of Israeli hostages being abused.

In an Instagram post on September 20, Azaiza explained that he filmed video showing captives held by Hamas while working as a journalist, but chose not to publish it because he feared revealing the location could put Palestinian civilians at risk. He said the site was struck by Israeli warplanes roughly twenty minutes later, killing the hostages and armed men present.

What Azaiza Says

Responding to criticism, Azaiza made three key points:

• He denied any involvement in the October 7, 2023 attacks, saying he was in Gaza documenting events as a photojournalist.
• He said he filmed but did not publish the footage of hostages being beaten because releasing it risked identifying and endangering the civilians shown.
• He clarified comments about a WhatsApp group called "Smart," saying he never claimed the group meant its journalists were controlled by Hamas.

"As for the video I recorded of Israeli hostages being held by Hamas, I filmed it inside Gaza while doing my job as a photojournalist. I chose not to publish it because I feared that revealing the location could put Palestinian civilians in the area at risk. Around twenty minutes later, the site was struck by Israeli warplanes, killing the hostages along with Hamas gunmen who were there." — Motaz Azaiza, Instagram, Sept. 20

The Instagram statement followed Azaiza's interview on the September 3 episode of the Taqarrab podcast, where he described filming scenes in which captives were abused. Quoting media reports of that interview, Azaiza said he followed and filmed people who were attacking captives but ultimately decided not to publish the recordings.

"Why? Because I did not want to ruin the lives of the people who were filmed. I understood that Israel would use those videos to identify every person who was there and eliminate them. I did not want to be responsible, even indirectly, for the deaths of those people in exchange for a few likes and views online."

On The WhatsApp 'Smart' Group

Azaiza addressed suggestions that the WhatsApp group known as "Smart," used by reporters in Gaza to coordinate coverage, was a Hamas-run operation. He said the group included many journalists and that government representatives sometimes shared situational updates there. He emphasized that participating in such a group does not equal membership in, or control by, Hamas.

Broader Context

Azaiza also reiterated that he has criticized Hamas as both a resistance faction and a governing authority in Gaza, while insisting such criticism should not be misrepresented as support for the Israeli occupation. He described suffering and threats he and his family have endured since the conflict escalated and rejected claims that his reporting amounted to propaganda for any party.

Note: The quotes and descriptions of Azaiza's interview have been reported in media outlets that covered his Taqarrab podcast appearance and Instagram post.