HAMILTON, Canada

Canada and 20 other countries issued a joint statement Friday, urging the protection of journalists in the Gaza Strip and calling on Israel to allow foreign media access to the enclave.

The statement, released by Global Affairs Canada, was endorsed by Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, and the UK.

"On September 24, during the High-Level Week of the United Nations General Assembly, France, along with Reporters Without Borders, organized an event dedicated to the situation of journalists in Gaza. At the end of this event, this statement was endorsed by 21 countries," it said.

Countries noted that they met with civil society groups "to discuss the protection of journalists in Gaza and access to information."

Without mentioning Israel, the statement said: "We pay tribute to the journalists killed and injured in Gaza while carrying out their work."

Reaffirming their position that the safety of journalists must be guaranteed, the statement also demanded "that their protection be ensured, in accordance with international humanitarian law."

"We call on the Israeli authorities to allow journalists who wish to leave the Gaza Strip to do so and to authorize access for independent foreign media to Gaza," it added.

More than 245 journalists and media workers have been killed in the region since Oct. 7, 2023, according to different media watchdogs.

The Israeli army has killed more than 65,500 Palestinians, most of them women and children, in Gaza since October 2023. Months of air and ground assaults have left Gaza largely uninhabitable, pushing its population into famine.