Five Al Jazeera journalists killed in targeted Israeli strike in Gaza
Gaza City, Gaza - Al Jazeera said two of its correspondents, including a prominent reporter, and three cameramen were killed in an Israeli strike on their tent in Gaza City on Sunday.
The attack was the latest to see journalists targeted in Israel's 22-month war on Gaza, with over 200 media workers killed over the course of the conflict, according to media watchdogs.
"Al Jazeera journalist Anas al-Sharif has been killed alongside four colleagues in a targeted Israeli attack on a tent housing journalists in Gaza City," the Qatar-based broadcaster said.
"Al-Sharif, 28, was killed on Sunday after a tent for journalists outside the main gate of the hospital was hit. The well-known Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent reportedly extensively from northern Gaza."
The channel said that five of its staff members were killed during the strike on a tent in Gaza City, listing the others as Mohammed Qreiqeh along with camera operators Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa.
The Israeli military confirmed that it had carried out the attack, saying it had struck Al Jazeera's Al-Sharif and calling him a "terrorist" who "posed as a journalist" – without providing evidence.
"A short while ago, in Gaza City, the IDF struck the terrorist Anas Al-Sharif, who posed as a journalist for the Al Jazeera network," it said on Telegram, using an acronym for the military.
"Anas Al-Sharif served as the head of a terrorist cell in the Hamas terrorist organization and was responsible for advancing rocket attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF troops," it added.
Anas Al-Sharif's killing condemned as "bloody crime"
Al-Sharif was one of the channel's most recognizable faces working on the ground in Gaza, providing daily reports in regular coverage.
Following a press conference by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, where the premier defended a plan to take control over Gaza City, Al-Sharif posted messages on X describing "intense, concentrated Israeli bombardment" on the city.
One of his final messages included a short video showing nearby Israeli strikes hitting Gaza City.
In July, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued a statement calling for Al-Sharif's protection as it accused the Israeli military's Arabic-language spokesperson Avichay Adraee of stepping up online attacks on the reporter by alleging that he was a Hamas terrorist.
Following the attack, the CPJ said it was "appalled" to learn of the journalists' deaths.
"Israel's pattern of labelling journalists as militants without providing credible evidence raises serious questions about its intent and respect for press freedom," said CPJ Regional Director Sara Qudah.
"Journalists are civilians and must never be targeted. Those responsible for these killings must be held accountable."
The Palestinian Journalists' Syndicate condemned what it described as a "bloody crime" of assassination.
Israel and Al Jazeera have had a contentious relationship for years, with Israeli authorities banning the channel in the country and raiding its offices following the latest war on Gaza.
Israel accused of war crimes in assassinating journalists
With Gaza sealed off, many media groups around the world depend on photo, video, and text coverage of the conflict provided by Palestinian reporters.
Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said in early July that more than 200 journalists had been killed in Gaza since the war began, including several Al Jazeera journalists.
"Israel’s ongoing campaign of targeted assassinations of Palestinian journalists is a war crime, plain and simple," said Nihad Awad, national executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
"The murder of these Al Jazeera journalists is not an accident or collateral damage – it is part of a consistent, documented policy of silencing media voices and hiding the truth of the genocide being carried out by Israel in Gaza."
International criticism is growing over the plight of the more than two million Palestinian civilians in Gaza, with UN agencies and rights groups warning that a famine is unfolding in the territory.
The targeted strike comes as Israel announced plans to expand its military operations on the ground in Gaza.
A UN official warned the Security Council that Israel's plans to control Gaza City risked "another calamity" with far-reaching consequences.
"If these plans are implemented, they will likely trigger another calamity in Gaza, reverberating across the region and causing further forced displacement, killings, and destruction," UN Assistant Secretary General Miroslav Jenca told the Security Council.
Cover photo: AFP