Five Al Jazeera journalists were killed on Sunday in an Israeli strike near Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, the broadcaster said, calling it a “targeted assassination” and “a blatant attack on press freedom.”
Correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqeh, along with cameramen Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa, were inside a journalists’ tent at the hospital’s main gate when the strike hit, killing seven people in total.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) later confirmed it had targeted al-Sharif, alleging he led a Hamas “terrorist cell” and was involved in planning rocket attacks. The IDF did not mention the other four journalists killed.
Al Jazeera rejected the allegations, saying al-Sharif, 28, was an accredited reporter whose work provided vital coverage from inside Gaza.
Its managing editor, Mohamed Moawad, told the BBC the journalists were not near the front line when they were attacked.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemned the strike, accusing Israel of repeatedly killing reporters and later labelling them terrorists without providing evidence.
The group says at least 186 journalists have been killed since Israel’s offensive in Gaza began in October 2023.
This is not the first time Al Jazeera staff have been targeted.
In August last year, reporter Ismael Al-Ghoul and cameraman Rami al-Rifi were killed in an Israeli air strike. Israel alleged Al-Ghoul took part in the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack, a claim the network denied.
The war began after Hamas-led fighters killed about 1,200 people and took 251 hostages in southern Israel on 7 October 2023.
Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says more than 61,000 people have been killed since Israel launched its military response.
