Reuters photojournalist Mohammed Salem was awarded the 2024 World Press Photo of the Year for his powerful image capturing a Palestinian woman embracing the lifeless body of her five-year-old niece in the Gaza Strip.
Mohammed Salem captured the poignant image on October 17, 2023, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza. Families were desperately searching for their loved ones who had lost their lives during the Israeli bombing of the Palestinian enclave.
The award-winning photograph by Mr. Salem captures the heart-wrenching moment when Inas Abu Maamar, aged 36, weeps as she cradles Saly’s lifeless body in the hospital morgue.
“Mohammed received the news of his WPP award with humility, saying that this is not a photo to celebrate but that he appreciates its recognition and the opportunity to publish it to a wider audience,” Reuters‘ Global Editor for Pictures and Video, Rickey Rogers, said at a ceremony in Amsterdam.
“He hopes with this award that the world will become even more conscious of the human impact of war, especially on children,” Rogers said, standing in front of the photo at the Nieuwe Kerk in the Dutch capital.
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The World Press Photo Foundation, headquartered in Amsterdam, emphasized the significance of acknowledging the risks that journalists encounter while reporting on conflicts.
During the Israel-Hamas conflict, a total of 99 journalists and media personnel lost their lives. The violence escalated after the Palestinian militant group attacked southern Israel on October 7, prompting Israel to launch a military offensive in Gaza.
“The work of press and documentary photographers around the world is often done at high risk,” said Joumana El Zein Khoury, the organisation’s executive director.
“This past year, the death toll in Gaza pushed the number of journalists killed to a near-record high. It is important to recognise the trauma they have experienced to show the world the humanitarian impact of the war.”
Mohammed Salem, a 39-year-old Palestinian, has been employed by Reuters since 2003. Additionally, he received an award in the 2010 World Press Photo competition.
“composed with care and respect, offering at once a metaphorical and literal glimpse into unimaginable loss,” the jury said Salem’s 2024 winning image.
“I felt the picture sums up the broader sense of what was happening in the Gaza Strip,” Mr. Salem said when the image was first published in November.
“People were confused, running from one place to another, anxious to know the fate of their loved ones, and this woman caught my eye as she was holding the body of the little girl and refused to let go.”
The jury chose the winning photographs from a pool of 61,062 submissions by 3,851 photographers representing 130 countries.
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Lee-Ann Olwage, a photographer from South Africa, secured the ‘Story of the Year’ award for her compelling images that document dementia in Madagascar.
Alejandro Cegarra from Venezuela secured the top spot in the long-term projects category with his series titled ‘The Two Walls,’ which was featured in The New York Times and Bloomberg.
Ukrainian photographer Julia Kochetova clinched the open format award with her project titled ‘War is Personal.’ In this powerful work, she skillfully combined photographs, poetry, audio, and music to create a compelling documentary-style portrayal of the war in her country.
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