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Five Al Jazeera Journalists Killed in Targeted Israeli Strike Outside al-Shifa Hospital
August 11, 2025
August 11, 2025 – Palestine –
In a devastating turn of events, Anas al-Sharif, a 28-year-old Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent, was killed in an Israeli airstrike on a tent housing journalists outside al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. Four others, including correspondent Mohammed Qreiqeh and camera operators Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa, also died in the strike. Seven people in total were killed during the attack.
The Israeli military acknowledged launching the strike, asserting that al-Sharif was the head of a Hamas cell responsible for rocket attacks on Israeli targets. However, both Al Jazeera and multiple press freedom organizations have condemned this characterisation, calling it unsubstantiated and prejudiced.
Before his death, al-Sharif posted on X that intense bombardment, referred to as “fire belts”, was underway in Gaza City, highlighting the perilous environment he was reporting from. He had previously received repeated threats and smear campaigns from Israeli officials, prompting urgent calls from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and the United Nations’ Special Rapporteur Irene Khan to safeguard his life.
Al Jazeera swiftly denounced the attack as a deliberate assault on press freedom, labelling it an “assassination” of journalists who had tirelessly documented the Gaza conflict. The strike deepens concerns about the increasing targeting of media workers in conflict zones, since the onset of the war in October 2023, over 180 journalists have been killed in Gaza, according to CPJ, with local authorities reporting tolls surpassing 230.
The killing of Anas al-Sharif and his colleagues marks a grievous moment for journalism, underscoring the growing threats faced by those reporting amid conflict and raising urgent questions about the protection of media workers and accountability for such attacks.
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