An Israeli airstrike on Sunday killed five Al Jazeera staffers, including 28-year-old correspondent Anas al-Sharif, when a missile hit a tent used by reporters near Gaza City’s al-Shifa Hospital. Israel’s military said it deliberately targeted al-Sharif, alleging he led a Hamas cell responsible for rocket attacks; the network rejected the claim as unfounded. A hospital official said two other people also died in the strike.
The network identified colleagues Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal and Moamen Aliwa among the dead. Minutes before he was killed, al-Sharif posted that Gaza City was under intense bombardment; a posthumous message he had queued up said, “If these words reach you, know that Israel has succeeded in killing me and silencing my voice.”
Press-freedom advocates condemned the attack and questioned Israel’s allegations. The Committee to Protect Journalists said Israel has repeatedly labeled reporters as militants without presenting credible evidence and noted that at least 186 journalists have been killed since October 7, 2023, the vast majority Palestinian. A United Nations special rapporteur previously called the claims against al-Sharif unsubstantiated and warned weeks ago that public targeting placed him in danger.
The deaths come amid a long-running dispute between Israel and the Qatar-based broadcaster. Israel has blocked the channel’s operations inside the country under a law adopted in 2024 and repeatedly extended, citing security grounds. In the occupied West Bank, authorities have also issued rolling closure orders against the network’s office.
Al-Sharif, widely followed on social media, had reported from northern Gaza since the start of the war and was previously part of a team honored for frontline coverage. The killings drew renewed calls from media-rights groups for accountability and for combatants to respect protections for journalists, who are civilians under international humanitarian law.
