On both “CBS Evening News” and “CBS Mornings” Tuesday, the news network took a moment to spotlight one of its longtime producers, the Gaza-based Marwan Al-Ghoul, as the Israel-Hamas War rages on his doorstep and fatalities for journalists in the region continue to rise.
Speaking with foreign correspondent Holly Williams while she was just 60 miles away in East Jerusalem, the journalist expressed that he is “worried” for his and his family’s safety while airstrikes continue and an impending ground invasion from the Israeli military brew.
“We are so worried about you,” Williams told Al-Ghoul.
“You are right. I am worried, too. I am concerned of my family,” he responded. “This makes me sometimes angry and sometimes I feel like I need to cry.”
Asked what an Israeli ground invasion would mean for him and his family, he responded that it’s a “difficult” question to answer.
“I cannot imagine where to go,” he said.
ON THE FRONTLINES: CBS News’ producer Marwan Al Ghoul reflects on his experience covering the ongoing Israel-Hamas war and sheds light on the risks journalists take to report on war unfolding around them. pic.twitter.com/4x1GxPHHh0
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) October 24, 2023
Williams began the segment by explaining that journalists based outside of Gaza cannot get into the region “to report on what’s happening first,” and that CBS and other news organizations have been “relying on videos and information from journalists based there,” like Al-Ghoul.
“Marwan Al-Ghoul, a CBS News producer who lives in Gaza, has been reporting on this war from the very beginning, risking his life to get the news out,” Williams explained. “Marwan is much loved here at CBS News. He’s worked with us on-and-off for more than two decades. He’s enriched our reporting when we’ve traveled to Gaza over the years, and he’s helped keep us safe.”
According to the CBS report, Al-Ghoul lost a brother in a 2009 airstrike, when Hamas and Israel fought a previous war.
CBS’ spotlight on Al-Ghoul came as deaths of journalists covering the conflict in Gaza hit at least 23 fatalities, and four more journalists remain unaccounted for, according to The Los Angeles Times.
The Israeli military action in Gaza comes in response to Hamas’ terrorist attacks against the nation on Oct. 7, which left over 1,400 dead and hundreds taken hostage. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded by hitting Gaza repeatedly with heavy airstrike bombardments that have left thousands killed and plunged the region into chaos.
