The heartbroken mother of Hamas victim Shani Louk has revealed how a prize awarded for a photograph of her daughter’s half-naked and mutilated body forced her family to relive the trauma of her murder.
The 22-year-old German-Israeli girl was one of the 364 people killed in the October 7 attacks at the SuperNova festival, which she was attending with her boyfriend.
The image shows four Hamas militants celebrating while brandishing a rocket launcher and weapons while sitting on the body of Shani Louk, who lies face down in the back of a van.
That photo, which was taken by independent photographer Ali Mahmud, was the centerpiece of the presentation that earned the AP photo agency the Team Image Story of the Year category from the Donald W. Reynolds Institute of Journalism at the School of Missouri Journalism.
Now Shani’s mother, Ricarda, has revealed that the award has forced her family to relive the trauma of her daughter’s murder.
Shani Louk, 22 (right), was one of 364 people killed by terrorists at the SuperNova Festival on October 7.
Ricarda Louk, 53, shows a photograph of her daughter before she was brutally murdered in the Hamas attacks on October 7.
The photo was the centerpiece of a submission for the Team Picture Story of the Year award.
she told him Telegraph: ‘[It is] ‘traumatic for all of us. Just try to imagine seeing your beloved girl half naked and lifeless in the truck with those savages around her.
The tattoo artist was still wearing the nightclub outfit she wore while attending the music festival in the image.
Separate images recorded in the hours after the photo was taken show his body paraded through the streets of Gaza, with some passersby spitting on him.
“Seeing those photos again because of the contest makes our family relive the pain,” Mrs. Louk said.
The 53-year-old added that her family was not told in advance that the photo was going to be submitted for an award, which she said “made me angry.”
‘The fact that they celebrated this photo with an award hurts us even more because it really is like celebrating that they were killed.
—I mean that the entire massacre is celebrated. It is no coincidence that they chose this photo and that is why it hurts us even more.’
MailOnline has contacted AP for comment.
The photojournalism institute’s director of photojournalism, Lynden Steele, said it “strongly” condemned the Oct. 7 attack but defended the award.
He said: ‘The reactions to the team’s photo story of the year express the greatest emotions related to that conflict.
“While we understand the reactions to the images, we also believe that photojournalism plays an important role in bringing attention to the harsh realities of war.”
The prestigious university was branded a “shame” when it awarded the world’s oldest photojournalism prize for the photograph of the 22-year-old’s mutilated body.
“RJI believes a gruesome image of Shani Louk’s half-naked corpse is award-winning work,” House Republican Leader Tom Emmer tweeted.
“Disgusting,” he added at the time.
Family photos of the young woman showed a happy, carefree spirit at the beginning of her adult life and friends of her family have said that is how she should be remembered.
Shani Louk attended the SuperNova Festival with her boyfriend Orion Radoux
Shani, 22, was German but grew up in Israel and was one of hundreds of unsuspecting partygoers at the Nova festival.
German tattoo artist Shani Louk, who was in her early 20s, was in Israel to attend a peace party at the time of the attack.
Louk’s friend Yuli Tsinker photographed at the Louk memorial at the SuperNova festival.
“This is how we choose to remember the beautiful Shani Louk,” one wrote. “We will not allow her memory to be trampled by inhumane thugs celebrating the AP photo of her tragic murder.”
“I’m horrified,” wrote another. ‘This is a photo of terrorists displaying the corpse of a Jewish woman after having murdered her. What a shame.’
Louk’s family and other victims of the SuperNova killings sued the AP and the Reuters news agency in February, accusing them of colluding in the atrocities they documented.
They claim that the agency’s freelancers were “long-time Hamas affiliates and full participants in the terrorist attack,” which they knew was about to happen.
The lobbying group HonestReporting, which expressed concern about the coverage, posted its “congratulations” to the AP for winning the award.
“How does it feel to do it behind the backs of the Palestinian photojournalists who infiltrated Israel on October 7 and took photographs like the one below Shani Louk’s body in a Hamas van?” they demanded.
‘Did that bother RJI before giving the award?’
This sentiment was echoed by Israeli parliamentarian and diplomat Danny Danon, who tweeted: “This photo captures Hamas terrorists desecrating the body of Shani Louk, may his soul rest in peace.”
‘However, the AP news agency proudly received an award for it. “Their continued pride in the “work” of their photographers and their participation in atrocities is shameful.”
Both the AP and Reuters denied any collusion with the attacks, and the AP issued a statement in February saying it had the “deepest sympathy for those affected” but insisted the allegations were “baseless.”
“The AP had no prior knowledge of the October 7 attacks, nor have we seen any evidence – not even in the lawsuit – that the independent journalists who contributed to our coverage did,” they wrote.
‘Allegations like this are reckless and create an even greater potential danger for journalists in the region.
Nissim Louk (right) expressed his firm belief that his daughter’s photograph will leave a mark on human history, considering it a symbol of the current era and hopefully serving as documentation for generations to come.
Louk’s father Nissim (right) expressed a different perspective, saying: “It’s good that the photo won the award.”
‘Documenting breaking news around the world, no matter how horrible, is our job.
“Without AP and other news organizations, the world would not have known what was happening on October 7.”
Despite the fury of some over the photo, Shani Louk’s father spoke out in defense of the award.
Nissim told Ynet: “It’s good that the photo won the award.” This is one of the most important photographs of the last 50 years.
He expressed his firm belief that his daughter’s photograph will leave a mark on human history, considering it a symbol of the current era and, hopefully, serving as documentation for generations to come.
“These are some of the photographs that shape human memory, the Jew raising his hands, the paratroopers at the Western Wall, photographs that symbolize an era,” he continued. ‘This documentation of Shani and Noa Argamani on the motorcycle symbolizes this era. “I think it’s good to use it to inform the future.”