Fatima Shbair, born in 1997, is a Palestinian photojournalist based in Gaza City. She is a self-taught photographer and has an interest in documenting people's stories, cultures , social issues and she is focusing on documenting the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in Gaza City. After studying business administration for three years at Al-Azhar University in Gaza, She switched to study journalism. Then in 2019 She started in photojournalism, working in the field, covering the escalation by Israeli forces targeting Gaza City. Her work was exhibited in Palestine, the UAE, London, Paris and she has worked on assignments for several agencies such as The New York Times, Middle East Eye, and Getty Images. She is currently a contributor to Everyday Middle East Instagram account and as a freelance photojournalist. As there were no institutions for photojournalism in Gaza, She had spent years, from 2013 to 2017, learning through experience. It all started as She lives in a conflict zone and has a message that She wants to convey to the world. She wished one day to be the person carrying the camera and transmitting the image. She worked as hard as She could and has achieved part of that. As a female photojournalist She has encountered many difficulties because of the conservative nature of Gaza society.
IWMF Awards
- Anja Niedringhaus Courage In Photojournalism Award Awardee, 2021