Five journalists working with Al Jazeera were killed on Sunday in what the network described as a “targeted assassination” by Israeli forces in Gaza.
Those killed were identified as correspondent Anas al-Sharif, journalist Mohammed Qreiqeh, and camera operators Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa.
According to Al Jazeera, the media crew was in a tent opposite the Al-Shifa Hospital complex in Gaza City when the airstrike hit.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF), however, claimed that al-Sharif was a senior Hamas figure allegedly involved in planning rocket attacks on Israeli civilians and soldiers. The military said it had “intelligence information and documents” linking him to the militant group.
Al Jazeera has strongly denied the allegations, describing them as “baseless” and warning that such claims could be used to justify further attacks on journalists.
This is not the first time al-Sharif has faced such accusations. In October 2024, the IDF posted his photo alongside other Al Jazeera staff on social media, labeling them as members of Hamas or Islamic Jihad — a claim the network rejected as fabricated.
Press freedom watchdog Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemned the killings, accusing Israel of repeatedly branding journalists as terrorists without credible proof. The group described al-Sharif as one of Al Jazeera’s most prominent correspondents, known recently for his coverage of starvation in Gaza amid aid shortages.
