Basem Naim Congratulates Shihab: Born of Hardship to Be a Voice for Truth and a Platform for Free Speech

Exclusive – Shihab

Dr. Basem Naim, head of the Arab and Islamic Relations Office in the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), has congratulated Shihab News Agency on the relaunch of its website and its new start, affirming that the agency was born of hardship and in the midst of attempts to erase the voice of legitimacy and obscure the truth, so that it would be a voice for truth and a platform for free speech, in the face of formidable challenges that only those with resolve and iron wills can confront.

In a statement to Shihab News Agency, Naim said: "Through the will and vision of its founders, the agency set out carrying the cause of a people and a cause, and believing in the mission of the media and its role in the battle of awareness and narrative."

He added that during the war of genocide on the Gaza Strip it was a voice for the aggrieved and a window for conveying the suffering of our people and exposing the crimes of the occupation, and that its mission did not stop despite the restrictions it has faced and continues to face and attempts to limit its presence and influence in the digital space.

The Hamas leader affirmed that "Shihab News Agency today consolidates its presence and standing among the ranks of prominent media agencies, continuing its journey with a renewed spirit and an ambition that hardships cannot limit, and it has had its share of its name (Shihab); strength in presence, speed in delivery, and brilliance in performance."

Dr. Naim offered all his wishes to Shihab News Agency, its founders and its staff for further success, excellence and advancement, and for the continuation of their media mission with all professionalism and steadfastness, so that Shihab remains a voice for truth and a platform for free speech.

It is noted that Shihab News Agency is a Palestinian news agency founded on the first of January 2007 in the Gaza Strip, and is considered one of the largest Palestinian news agencies. It is followed by a broad segment of the Arab and Islamic world on its digital platforms, despite its pages having been shut down more than once.

The agency works around the clock to convey the true picture of events on the Palestinian arena, to entrench the principles of free professional media, and to document facts in sound and image so that they reach the world. It also provides news, production and technical services to local, Arab and international media institutions.

The agency is launching its new website on the eleventh of November this month, in a new phase of its media journey.