Motaz Azaiza, an independent Palestinian photojournalist, was named one of Time magazine's '100 Most Influential People' of 2024 on Wednesday for serving as the "world's eyes and ears" amid Israel's continuing military onslaught in the Gaza Strip.
According to the health ministry in Gaza, Israel's military operation to destroy Hamas has killed at least 33,899 people, the majority of whom are women and children, in response to the October 7 attack.
Several countries and international rights organisations have criticised Israel’s response to the attack as “disproportionate”.
Meanwhile, at least 97 journalists and media personnel have been killed since Israel launched its retaliatory assaults on the Gaza Strip, with 92 of them Palestinian, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
Throughout all of this, Azaiza thoroughly chronicled the consequences of the war, Israeli assault, and widespread damage to Gaza for more than 100 days.
Meanwhile, the freelance photographer, who was driven onto the front lines by the atrocities of the fighting while most international reporters were denied entry to Gaza, garnered global recognition when he videotaped himself wearing a press vest.
Time reported that "for 108 days, Motaz Azaiza served as the world's eyes and ears in his own Gaza.
Armed with a camera and a 'press' flak jacket, the 25-year-old Palestinian photographer spent nearly four months capturing life under Israeli bombardment."
Since the beginning of the conflict, the photojournalist has amassed millions of followers across social media.
According to Al Jazeera's social media statistics, his Instagram following has grown from around 27,500 to 18.25 million in over 100 days from October 7.
Similarly, his Facebook account grew from a comparable amount to around 500,000 followers. On X, he now has a million followers.
Azaiza received global attention from magazines such as Time, GQ, and Vogue Arabia. GQ Middle East named him the 2023 Man of the Year.
Vogue Arabia's November 2023 edition pays tribute to Azaiza amid Gaza's humanitarian catastrophe. Time previously included one of his shots in its annual top ten list.
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