A celebrated Gaza photojournalist who has repeatedly met with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has acknowledged that he deliberately withheld footage he filmed on October 7 showing Palestinians attacking Israeli hostages — because he feared publication would allow Israel to identify and kill those involved.
Motaz Azaiza, who was named to Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People list in 2024 and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, made the disclosure during a lengthy interview on the Taqarrab podcast. Mediaite reported on the interview Tuesday, following earlier reporting by the New York Post.
Azaiza described following a vehicle carrying Israeli captives after they were brought into Gaza on October 7.
“People got out, watched, beat them, hit them, and I followed them and filmed,” Azaiza said. “But I did not publish those videos.”
He then explained why he withheld the footage.
“Why? Because I did not want to ruin the lives of the people who were filmed,” Azaiza said. “I understood that Israel would use those videos to identify every person who was there and eliminate them.”
Azaiza continued: “I did not want to be responsible, even indirectly, for the deaths of those people in exchange for a few likes and views online.”
The disclosure has drawn additional attention because of Azaiza’s relationship with Mamdani. Azaiza has publicly met with the mayor on multiple occasions, attended Mamdani’s election-night victory celebration and recently visited him at Gracie Mansion.
Following an August 2025 encounter with Mamdani, Azaiza posted about what he said was a dramatically different experience in New York compared with an earlier visit.
“Last time I visited New York in March 2024, I was cursed at and called a terrorist. People told me to go back and die. The air felt divided,” Azaiza wrote.
“But this time… it was different. I felt something I haven’t felt in a long time—unity.”
After another visit with Mamdani at Gracie Mansion in July, Azaiza wrote: “It’s always good to be at the mayor’s house.”
Mamdani himself has repeatedly condemned Hamas and has described the October 7 attack as a “horrific war crime.”
Azaiza also made extraordinary claims about the environment in which Palestinian journalists operate inside Gaza, saying Hamas exercises significant control over media coverage and that reporters fear consequences for publishing material critical of the terror group.
“Photographers in Gaza have become accustomed to lowering their cameras the moment someone says something bad about Hamas,” Azaiza said, “because anyone who dares to show reality is persecuted relentlessly.”
According to Azaiza, Gaza journalists participated in a Hamas-run WhatsApp group through which media activity was coordinated. He said he himself faced retaliation after publishing footage showing Gazans criticizing Hamas and eventually left Gaza for Qatar.
Azaiza also sharply attacked Hamas during the interview over its treatment of Gaza’s population.
“You brought us back to the Middle Ages,” he said. “You caused women in Gaza to urinate into a plastic bucket. This does not bother you, but what bothers you is if someone suddenly criticizes you?”
Reflecting on his experiences during the war, Azaiza added: “Gaza is the most toxic place in the world. You love it, but at the same time you hate it. You love it, but it hurts you and destroys you.”
“The reality there forced things upon me that I never wanted — the price we pay to satisfy leaders who do not count us is simply unimaginable.”
Azaiza has disputed how portions of his interview have subsequently been portrayed, saying on social media that coverage was “disgracefully and dishonestly distorted, poorly translated, and taken out of context.”
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
