5 Al Jazeera journos killed in Israeli strike on Gaza City

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Al Jazeera correspondent Anas al-Sharif was killed along with four colleagues when Israeli forces targeted a tent sheltering journalists in Gaza City, Al Jazeera reported.

Another report said, Five journalists, including two correspondents and three cameramen, were killed on Sunday in an Israeli strike on a tent in Gaza City, according to the broadcaster they worked for.

The Israeli military confirmed it had targeted reporter Anas al-Sharif, describing him as a Hamas “terrorist” who posed as a journalist and led a militant cell responsible for rocket attacks on Israeli civilians and troops.

Al-Sharif, 28, was a prominent correspondent who reported extensively from northern Gaza. The other victims were identified as Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa.

The attack occurred outside the main gate of a Gaza City hospital, where a tent for journalists had been set up. Media watchdogs say it marks the latest in a series of incidents in the 22-month war that have killed around 200 media workers.

The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the strike, accusing Israel of a pattern of labelling journalists as militants without providing evidence. “Journalists are civilians and must never be targeted,” said CPJ Regional Director Sara Qudah, calling for accountability.

The Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate denounced the incident as a “bloody crime of assassination.”

Relations between Israel and the broadcaster have long been tense, with the channel banned in Israel and its offices raided since the outbreak of the current war.

The conflict has made international reporting from Gaza heavily reliant on local journalists, with rights groups warning of worsening humanitarian conditions and famine risk.

The strike came as Israel announced plans to expand ground operations in Gaza, targeting remaining Hamas strongholds. A UN official warned the Security Council that such moves could trigger “another calamity” with further displacement, deaths, and destruction, the report adds.

The Al Zazeera report said, the attack, carried out late Sunday outside the main gate of al-Shifa Hospital, claimed seven lives in total. Among the dead were fellow Al Jazeera correspondent Mohammed Qreiqeh and camera operators Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa.

Before his death, al-Sharif, a prominent 28-year-old Arabic-language reporter known for his extensive coverage of northern Gaza, posted on X about heavy, concentrated Israeli bombardment — or “fire belts” — hitting the city’s eastern and southern areas. In his final video, explosions thundered in the background as orange flashes lit up the night sky.

In a message written on April 6 to be released in the event of his death, al-Sharif reflected on the suffering he had witnessed, saying he had “lived the pain in all its details” and “tasted grief and loss repeatedly,” but had never wavered in his commitment to tell the truth. He expressed sorrow over leaving behind his wife, Bayan, and missing the chance to watch his son Salah and daughter Sham grow up.Al Jazeera Media Network condemned the killings as a “blatant and premeditated attack on press freedom,” describing them as part of the wider devastation caused by Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza, which it said has brought “slaughter of civilians, forced starvation, and the obliteration of entire communities.” The network accused Israel of trying to silence reporting that exposes its actions and urged the international community to act to stop the “deliberate targeting of journalists.”

Hani Mahmoud, an Al Jazeera English correspondent who was nearby when the strike occurred, said reporting on al-Sharif’s death was the hardest task he had faced in nearly two years of war. He said the journalists were targeted because of their coverage of starvation, famine, and malnutrition in Gaza.

Israel’s military confirmed it had intentionally targeted al-Sharif, accusing him of leading a Hamas cell and facilitating rocket attacks — claims it said were backed by documents. However, Muhammed Shehada of the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor said there was “zero evidence” linking him to any militant activity, noting his daily work was on camera.

Last month, the UN’s special rapporteur on freedom of expression, Irene Khan, warned of growing evidence that journalists in Gaza were being killed on the basis of unsubstantiated allegations of Hamas ties. Al Jazeera has accused Israel of fabricating evidence and running a “campaign of incitement” against its reporters, while the Committee to Protect Journalists voiced concern over an Israeli “smear campaign” targeting al-Sharif.

Rights groups say Israel has routinely labelled Palestinian journalists in Gaza as Hamas operatives in an effort to undermine their reporting. Since the war began in October 2023, more than 200 journalists and media workers — including several from Al Jazeera and their family members — have been killed in Israeli attacks.

Source: Al Jazeera