Five Al Jazeera Journalists Killed in Israeli Strike in Gaza
In a devastating incident, five Al Jazeera journalists were killed in an Israeli strike near Gaza City’s Al-Shifa Hospital, the broadcaster has confirmed.
The attack occurred on Sunday, with correspondent Anas al-Sharif, Mohammed Qreiqeh, and cameramen Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa among the victims.
Al Jazeera has condemned the incident as a “targeted assassination” and a “blatant and premeditated attack on press freedom.”
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) subsequently confirmed that it had targeted Anas al-Sharif, claiming he was the head of a terrorist cell in Hamas.
However, the IDF did not mention the other journalists who lost their lives in the strike.
Background on the Journalists
Anas al-Sharif, 28, was an accredited journalist who had reported extensively from northern Gaza.
According to Al Jazeera’s managing editor, Mohamed Moawad, al-Sharif was “the only voice” for the world to know what was happening in the Gaza Strip.
Throughout the conflict, Israel has not allowed international journalists into Gaza to report freely, relying on local reporters within the territory for coverage.
Moawad emphasized that the journalists were targeted in their tent, away from the front line, and that the Israeli government is attempting to silence the coverage of any channel of reporting from inside Gaza.
International Condemnation
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has expressed outrage over the killing of the journalists, with chief executive Jodie Ginsberg stating that Israeli authorities have failed to provide evidence to show that the journalists they killed were terrorists.
This incident is not the first time the IDF has targeted and killed Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza, claiming they were Hamas-affiliated.
The CPJ has confirmed that 186 journalists have been killed since the start of Israel’s military offensive in Gaza in October 2023.
The situation for journalists still in Gaza remains dire, with the threat of air strikes and starvation looming large.
Last month, the BBC and three news agencies issued a joint statement expressing “desperate concern” for journalists in the Strip, who are increasingly unable to feed themselves and their families.
More than 100 international aid organisations and human rights groups have warned of mass starvation in Gaza.