Al Jazeera says two of its correspondents, including prominent reporter Anas Al-Sharif, and three cameramen were killed on Sunday in an Israeli airstrike targeting their tent in Gaza City.
The Israeli military confirmed the attack, alleging that Al-Sharif, 28, was a Hamas operative “posing as a journalist” and responsible for coordinating rocket attacks. Al Jazeera rejected the claim, calling the strike a deliberate attack on the press.
According to the broadcaster, Al-Sharif was killed alongside Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa while reporting outside Gaza City’s main hospital. The strike is the latest in a conflict that has killed more than 200 journalists since the war began, according to media watchdogs.
The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the killing, warning that Israel’s repeated labelling of reporters as militants without evidence “raises serious questions” about its respect for press freedom. The Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate called it a “bloody crime” of assassination.
The attack comes as Israel prepares to expand ground operations in Gaza, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowing to target remaining Hamas strongholds. UN officials warned the Security Council that the move could trigger “another calamity” for the territory’s 2.3 million residents.
The Israeli military confirmed the attack, alleging that Al-Sharif, 28, was a Hamas operative “posing as a journalist” and responsible for coordinating rocket attacks. Al Jazeera rejected the claim, calling the strike a deliberate attack on the press.
According to the broadcaster, Al-Sharif was killed alongside Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa while reporting outside Gaza City’s main hospital. The strike is the latest in a conflict that has killed more than 200 journalists since the war began, according to media watchdogs.
The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the killing, warning that Israel’s repeated labelling of reporters as militants without evidence “raises serious questions” about its respect for press freedom. The Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate called it a “bloody crime” of assassination.
The attack comes as Israel prepares to expand ground operations in Gaza, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowing to target remaining Hamas strongholds. UN officials warned the Security Council that the move could trigger “another calamity” for the territory’s 2.3 million residents.
