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At a time when the Israeli Death Forces (IDF) cut off about 800,000 Palestinians from the rest of the world and placed them in a total blackout, Israeli tanks and troops rolled into Gaza city after its forces have deliberately destroyed Internet and silenced Palestinian voices as attacks escalated. People are left without food, water, or medicine for several months. This will be the most brutal assault on Gaza City since the start of the war.
Israel has so far assassinated over 270 Palestinian journalists in Gaza while working or during their sleep. No Western journalists have been allowed to cover the Israeli war of genocide in Gaza because Israel prefers to commit its worst atrocities of this genocide in the dark.
Among the Palestinian journalists who were killed was Mustafa Ayash. According to the IDF, he was supposed to have been killed along with 70 members of his family in an apparent airstrike on his house in Al Nuseirat Camp on Nov. 22, 2023. Later he was resurrected in Austria and then 5 days ago he was arrested in the Netherlands. Obviously, Israel lied again!
Who is Mustafa Ayash?
Mustafa Ayash is the founder and director of the Gaza Now News agency, which has 1.81 million followers. Like all other journalists, doctors, scholars, teacher, and infants on incubators, the IDF accused them of being Hamas members or providing material and technical support to Hamas. Most of the time, the IDF justify killing civilians in Gaza because they voted for Hamas even though most of the victims were not even born or eligible to vote during the 2006 first Palestinian election, which Hamas won. In addition, Israeli soldiers prefer to kill Palestinian children before they grow up and have a chance to fight against the occupation. They are simply a soft target! That's how the IDF earned the title "baby killers."
Israel News Pulse reported on Mar 28, 2024, that Austrian authorities have apprehended Mustafa Ayyash, the director of the “Gaza Now” news agency, along with his wife, over anti-terrorism activities. He was apparently released after Austrian officials investigated and shut down multiple of Gaza Now's social media profiles. He was not found guilty of any crime.
In response to the allegations, Gaza Now issued an official statement denying any links to terrorism, asserting its status as an independent Palestinian media outlet. Gaza Now further reiterated that it has no affiliations with any domestic or international political party. The accusation is nothing more than Israeli tactics to hide its war crimes being committed on a daily basis in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
Now this Palestinian journalist is on a hunger strike after being arrested and put in detention under severe conditions. Mustafa Ayash is currently being held on Mickey Mouse charges of "ties to terrorist organization" for which no evidence has been provided whatsoever. He faces deportation either to Austria or Israel.
The truth is, Mustafa is a political prisoner: he is detained for publicly exposing Israel's war crimes. His potential deportation poses a direct threat to his life and constitutes a serious violation of press freedom. Mustafa must remain in prison for 20 days to learn whether he may await his case in freedom.
On Tuesday, September 23, 2025, Mustafa went on a hunger strike. Mustafa had 6 million followers and is a well-known and important voice in Palestine. Israel is trying to silence him and has murdered forty of his family members in November 2023. It is sad and painful to see how Palestinian journalists, who have sacrificed their lives to proclaim the truth and expose crimes, are persecuted today in countries that claim to protect press freedom and human rights.
On March 4, 2024, Ayash posted this message on Twitter, "After the Israeli occupation killed my family and completely destroyed our home in Gaza, today I am exposed to real “death” threats, as I received many threats that said: “You are next” after an ongoing smear campaign since the beginning of the events of October 7th."
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He further wrote, "Therefore, I filed a complaint with the authorities in the country in which I am located without obtaining a statement, and another complaint was rejected. I filed a complaint with the International Criminal Court, the Human Rights Court, and the European Court, and I am working to complete the procedures.
Thus, I hold the responsible authorities in the country in which I live, and I hold the Israeli occupation fully responsible for any harm that may happen to me or to any of my family members who are still alive."
Readers can make a difference by contacting the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, via email at: dick.schoof@gmail.com or at twitter: @MPDickSchoof and demand that Mustafa Ayash should be freed and not extradited to Apartheid Israel. It is well established according to reports by the Israeli press that Israel subjected Palestinian prisoners to torture, rape, and even death due to medical negligence. It is our moral duty to stand up for Mustafa Ayash's free speech.
Mustafa carried only a camera and microphone as his weapon to denounce violations and address the suffering of his people. I who wrote articles for Gaza Now for several years before the war, testify that the allegations against Mustafa Ayash are pure poppycock. I stand behind Mustafa Ayash and demand his immediate and unconditional release.
Mahmoud El-Yousseph is a Palestinian freelance writer and retired U.S. AirForce veteran. He writes on U.S. foreign policy, Middle East affairs, and justice. Email: elyousseph6@yahoo.com
1. The family of Mustafa Ayash, director of the Gaza Now news network and channel, who was martyred after Israeli occupation planes bombed the family home in the Nusrat camp in the central Gaza Strip at dawn on Wednesday 11/22/2023. Photo credit: Gaza Now in English. 2. Mustafa Ayyash, founder of Gaza Now/ Photo credit: ibrahimforgaza twitter account. 3. The Israeli occupation killed my family: “my father, my mother, my brothers, my sisters, their husbands, and their children.” What is the charge? A Palestinian looking to live in freedom, security and peace. The world watches, closes its eyes, and ignores the genocide in Gaza. From a Jan. 7, 2024, tweet by Mustafa Ayash.