Israel\u2019s military said it killed an Al Jazeera journalist it accused of being a Hamas cell leader in a Gaza airstrike, while rights groups argued he was targeted for his frontline coverage of the Gaza war and that Israel\u2019s claim lacked credible evidence. According to Gaza officials and Al Jazeera, 28-year-old Anas Al Sharif was among four Al Jazeera journalists and an assistant killed when an Israeli strike hit a tent near Shifa Hospital in eastern Gaza City. A hospital official confirmed that two additional people also lost their lives in the attack. Describing Al Sharif as \u201cone of Gaza\u2019s bravest journalists,\u201d Al Jazeera called the strike a \u201cdesperate attempt to silence voices ahead of the occupation of Gaza.\u201d The Israeli military alleged that Al Sharif led a Hamas cell and was \u201cinvolved in planning and facilitating rocket attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF forces,\u201d citing intelligence and documents recovered in Gaza. The killings were widely condemned by journalists\u2019 associations and Al Jazeera. The other journalists killed were identified as Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, and Mohammed Noufal, according to Al Jazeera. A press freedom group and a UN expert previously warned that Al Sharif\u2019s life was in danger due to his reporting from Gaza. UN Special Rapporteur Irene Khan said last month that Israel\u2019s claims against him were unsubstantiated. Al Jazeera said Al Sharif had left a social media message to be posted in the event of his death that read, \u201c\u2026I never hesitated to convey the truth as it is, without distortion or misrepresentation, hoping that God would witness those who remained silent.\u201d Last October, Israel\u2019s military had named Al Sharif as one of six Gaza journalists it alleged were members of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, citing documents it said showed lists of people who completed training courses and salaries. \u201cAl Jazeera categorically rejects the Israeli occupation forces\u2019 portrayal of our journalists as terrorists and denounces their use of fabricated evidence,\u201d the network said in a statement at the time. In a statement, the Committee to Protect Journalists, which in July urged the international community to protect Al Sharif, said Israel had failed to provide any evidence to back up its allegations against him. \u201cIsrael\u2019s pattern of labeling journalists as militants without providing credible evidence raises serious questions about its intent and respect for press freedom,\u201d said Sara Qudah, CPJ\u2019s director for the Middle East and North Africa. Al Sharif, whose X account showed more than 500,000 followers, posted on the platform minutes before his death that Israel had been intensely bombarding Gaza City for more than two hours. Palestinian group Hamas, which runs Gaza, said the killing may signal the start of an Israeli offensive. \u201cThe assassination of journalists and the intimidation of those who remain paves the way for a major crime that the occupation is planning to commit in Gaza City,\u201d Hamas said in a statement. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he would launch a new offensive to dismantle Hamas strongholds in Gaza, where a hunger crisis is escalating after 22 months of war. \u201cAnas Al Sharif and his colleagues were among the last remaining voices in Gaza conveying the tragic reality to the world,\u201d Al Jazeera said. The Hamas-run Gaza government media office said 237 journalists have been killed since the war started on October 7, 2023. The Committee to Protect Journalists said at least 186 journalists have been killed in the Gaza conflict.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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