Recent Al Jazeera reporter’s death in Gaza adds to growing toll of slain media professionals

An Israeli airstrike struck a journalists' tent near Shifa Hospital in Gaza City on Aug 10, killing Al Jazeera correspondent Anas al-Sharif and two fellow journalists — Mohammed Qreiqeh and their assistant and three cameramen.

The network denounced the strike as a deliberate attack on journalists. Israel’s military justified the action by alleging al-Sharif led a Hamas cell, a claim Al Jazeera and rights groups reject as unsubstantiated.

The killing has once again brought global attention to the staggering number of journalists killed during the Israel–Gaza war. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reports that since the conflict began on October 7, 2023, at least 186 journalists and media workers have been killed, including at least 178 Palestinians, making this one of the deadliest conflicts for the press in recent history.

In 2024 alone, more than 124 media professionals were killed worldwide, with two-thirds being Palestinians in Gaza — a record-breaking figure.

Among other casualties, Hossam Shabat, an Al Jazeera Mubasher reporter, was killed by an Israeli airstrike on March 24, 2025. Though Israel later acknowledged targeting him, no conclusive evidence was made public.

Freelance journalist Yahya Sobeih died hours after celebrating the birth of his daughter killed on May 7, 2025, while covering community efforts amid the conflict.

Earlier, photojournalist Ismail Abu Hatab, known for documenting daily life in Gaza, was killed in an Israeli strike on a café on June 30, 2025; at least 41 others were also killed in the attack.

The toll also included Duaa Sharaf, a radio presenter, killed with her child in an October 2023 strike on their home. These individual losses are poignant reminders of the broader collapse of media safety in the region.

Israeli claims — such as branding journalists like al-Sharif and Shabat as militants — have been heavily criticized by press freedom advocates.

The CPJ condemned the “pattern of labeling journalists as militants without credible evidence,” warning that such tactics undermine rights protections and press freedom.

Media organizations including Al Jazeera, Reporters Without Borders, and the International Federation of Journalists have condemned the killings as violations of international law, calling for independent investigations and accountability.

The attack against Anas al-Sharif came days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly defended a plan to fully capture Gaza City, an escalation coinciding with intensifying humanitarian tragedies such as hundreds of child deaths from malnutrition and widespread civilian suffering.

The deaths of al-Sharif and his colleagues, among the few remaining media personnel in Gaza, underscore the increasing peril faced by journalists in conflict zones.

Despite obstacles like restricted access for foreign media, local reporters continue to bear the burden of documenting unfolding events, often at the cost of their lives.