An AFP documentary follows four Gaza journalists working through the war, highlighting how restrictions on foreign access have made local reporters central to coverage seen by audiences outside the territory.
Directed by Hélène Lam Trong, Inside Gaza follows reporter Mai Yaghi, Gaza bureau chief Adel Zaanoun, and photojournalists Mahmud Hams and Mohammed Abed. Its West Coast premiere took place at The American French Film Festival in Los Angeles on Sunday, Nov. 8.
Agence France-Presse (AFP) said the film combines the journalists' accounts with video that had not been released before. The agency said it relocated its Gaza staff and their families in spring 2024 and has since depended on Palestinian freelancers who stayed in the territory.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) says Israel has barred foreign journalists from entering Gaza since the conflict began. Lam Trong told AFP in Los Angeles that Palestinian journalists could not leave. “They were trapped alongside the civilian population of Gaza,” she said.
In an assessment published Nov. 9, RSF counted nearly 210 journalists killed by the Israeli military in Gaza and Lebanon from October 2023 to October 2026. It said 71 journalists were killed in connection with their work, including 63 in Gaza and eight in Lebanon.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) separately reviewed 229 journalist death cases in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory between October 2023 and August 2026. CPJ removed 22 people previously listed as journalists, reinstated six and reclassified 12. Its review used different geographic boundaries and case classifications, making its count not directly comparable with RSF's figures.
The Academy was due to announce its 2027 Oscar nominees in January. AFP said the film's grand prize at Doc Edge put it in contention for Best Documentary Feature.
