‘Anadolu Agency is voice for Gazans to world’

By Nesma Seyam

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - Many prominent Palestinians in the Gaza Strip say that Anadolu Agency has not only served as the voice of Gazans to the world but also as a bridge to foster relations between the brotherly peoples of Palestine and Turkey.

They shared these views as the Turkish international news agency celebrates 100 years of news production.

“Anadolu Agency is seen as one of the most important international agencies that have succeeded in the last 10 years in breaking the monopoly of famous western agencies,” said Ahmed Yousef, a Palestinian politician and former aide of ex-Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh.

In recent years, he added: "The agency’s coverage of events in the Middle East and the Islamic world proved that it is a highly credible news agency that gained a lot of respect and appreciation among the peoples of the region.

“Anadolu Agency has contributed in presenting a true picture of the Arab Spring and showed the world the extent of the injustice suffered by the peoples of the region due to oppression and political tyranny,” he added.

“In our Palestinian squares, the agency was among those working to cover the scenes of war and oppression in the Gaza Strip, and its pictorial coverage and reports of Israeli war crimes were transmitted to the whole world.

“Anadolu’s cameras were always present through the Great March of Return launched in March 2018, and its lenses documented many scenes and images that reflected the crimes of Israeli occupation against the besieged Palestinian people," he added.

Yousef also congratulated Anadolu Agency on its professional performance.
“On its 100th anniversary, we hope that Anadolu Agency will remain the voice of truth for Arabs and Muslims,” he said.
Adnan Abu Amer, head of the Political Science Department at the University of Ummah in Gaza and a political analyst, said Anadolu Agency had accomplished, over the past years, great trust and reliability in the Arab world and across the globe.

As for Palestinian matters, it is true that the agency has always been keen to cover political issues, but it also tackled social and cultural aspects.

“Anadolu Agency has always given extensive time and energy through its reporters in the Palestinian territories and the editorial personnel in Ankara to cover Palestinian political events, mostly during the devastating Israeli aggressions on the Gaza Strip between 2008 and 2014,” he said.

“Anadolu Agency has played a significant role in countering a plethora of solo pro-Israeli narratives adopted by most international mainstream media.”

Abu Amer asserted that Palestinians see Anadolu Agency as a platform to further convey the Palestinian narrative to the outside world, referring to it as a “mobile diplomatic agent.”

-Fostering Palestinian-Turkish ties

Youth activist Khalil Al-Batsh, 24, said Anadolu Agency “comes at the forefront among the news agencies covering the Palestinian issue. It has been sacrificing in order to narrate our story around the clock, especially during the Gaza siege and the three wars.”

“Having an international platform such as Anadolu Agency focusing on the Palestinian struggle for freedom, self-determination and the right of return rekindles hope for our young generation,” he added.

In May last year, Israeli warplanes hit a building where Anadolu Agency’s office was located.

“Targeting Anadolu Agency’s office in Gaza is new example of Israel’s unrestrained aggression,” Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu tweeted that time.

Khalid Safi, a history professor from Gaza, said that when it comes to covering the Palestinian cause, Anadolu Agency is his first-choice source of information.

“Anadolu Agency is one of the most credible news outlets, especially when it comes to its coverage to the ongoing blockade on Gaza,” said Safi.

The Agency’s nonstop coverage on Palestine has also played an important role in solidifying the bond between the Palestinian and Turkish nations.

“Anadolu Agency has rarely been driven by media scoops at the expense of professionalism and objectivity. It has always maintained its credible content,” added Safi.

Safi went on to note that Anadolu Agency’s distinctive performance since its establishment “puts further pressure on the agency to keep pushing the wheel of success.”


On April 6, 2020, Anadolu Agency celebrate its centenary. It was established 100 years ago by Mustafa Kemal, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, to inform the world about the Turkish national struggle for independence.

The agency currently produces news in 13 languages; Turkish, English, Arabic, French, Spanish, Kurdish in two dialects -- Kurmanji and Sorani -- Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian, Russian, Albanian, Persian, Macedonian and Indonesian.

As a global news agency, Anadolu Agency is among the 10 most influential media outlets in the world, providing its subscribers in more than 90 countries thousands of news stories, photos, videos, infographics, and other information-based content through its global network of correspondents and photojournalists in 100 countries.