Motaz Azaiza Is on the 2024 TIME100 List

Credit - Courtesy Motaz Azaiza

For 108 days, Motaz Azaiza acted as the world’s eyes and ears in his native Gaza. Armed with a camera and a flak jacket marked “PRESS,” the 25-year-old Palestinian photographer spent nearly four months documenting life under Israeli bombardment: families displaced from homes, women mourning loved ones, a man trapped beneath the rubble. His images offered a glimpse into Gaza that few in the international press—which has been all but barred from accessing the Strip—could rival. He did so at great risk: At least 95 journalists have been killed in Gaza since Oct. 7, in what has been the deadliest period for the press since the Committee to Protect Journalists began tracking fatalities in 1992. Dozens more have been injured or arrested. Since evacuating Gaza in January, Azaiza’s role has shifted to raising awareness of the crisis—and to calling for international intervention. “What is happening in Gaza is not content for you,” he said. “We are not telling you what is happening ... for your likes or views or shares. No, we are waiting for you to act. We need to stop this war.”

Serhan is a TIME staff writer

Contact us at letters@time.com.