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An Israeli airstrike in Gaza on Sunday night killed five journalists and two other people, according to Al Jazeera. The attack struck a tent where the reporters had been staying. Among the victims was Anas al-Sharif, a prominent Palestinian correspondent for the Qatari-owned network who had documented Israel’s bombardment of Gaza since foreign journalists were barred from entering the territory.
Al-Sharif posted his final message on X shortly before his death, writing:
“I have lived through pain in all its details, tasted suffering and loss many times, yet I never once hesitated to convey the truth as it is, without distortion or falsification, so that Allah may bear witness against those who stayed silent, those who accepted our killing.”
The Israel Defense Forces confirmed responsibility for the strike, alleging that al-Sharif was also the head of a Hamas cell responsible for “advanced rocket attacks” on Israel. Al Jazeera rejected the accusation, calling it unfounded, and the UN’s special rapporteur on freedom of expression, Irene Khan, noted last month that Israel had not provided evidence to support its claims.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemned the attack, saying Israel has a pattern of labeling journalists as militants without substantiating evidence. “Journalists are civilians and must never be targeted,” said CPJ’s Regional Director Sara Qudah.
Since the Israel–Hamas war erupted in October 2023, at least 186 journalists have been killed, with CPJ attributing 178 of those deaths to Israeli forces. Israel has banned foreign reporters from entering Gaza, forcing networks to depend on local Palestinian journalists, a practice that has made those correspondents particularly vulnerable.
The killings come amid intensified Israeli military operations in Gaza, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushes ahead with plans to seize Gaza City despite mounting international criticism over the humanitarian crisis. Netanyahu signaled Sunday that the new offensive could be completed “fairly quickly,” a statement likely to inflame both political tensions and global outrage.