Netanyahu defends killing Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza
IDF accused Anas Al Sharif of being a Hamas cell leader in a Gaza airstrike on Sunday.
However, rights advocates have rejected this claim saying he was targeted for his frontline reporting on the Gaza war and Israel's claim lacked evidence.
He was among a group of four Al Jazeera journalists and an assistant who were killed, according to Gaza officials and Al Jazeera. An official at the hospital said two other people were also killed in the strike.
Calling Al Sharif 'one of Gaza's bravest journalists,' Al Jazeera said the attack was a 'desperate attempt to silence voices in anticipation of the occupation of Gaza.'
Al Sharif was the head of a Hamas cell and 'was responsible for advancing rocket attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF (Israeli) troops,' the Israeli military said in a statement, citing intelligence and documents found in Gaza as evidence.
Journalists' groups and Al Jazeera denounced the killings.
The other journalists killed were Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher and Mohammed Noufal, Al Jazeera said.
A press freedom group and a UN expert previously warned that Al Sharif's life was in danger due to his reporting from Gaza.
UN Special Rapporteur Irene Khan said last month that Israel's 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, '...I never hesitated to convey the truth as it is, without distortion or misrepresentation, hoping that God would witness those who remained silent.'
Last October, Israel's 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.
'Al Jazeera categorically rejects the Israeli occupation forces' portrayal of our journalists as terrorists and denounces their use of fabricated evidence,' 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.
'Israel's pattern of labeling journalists as militants without providing credible evidence raises serious questions about its intent and respect for press freedom,' said Sara Qudah, CPJ's 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 militant group Hamas, which runs Gaza, said the killing may signal the start of an Israeli offensive.
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.
'Anas Al Sharif and his colleagues were among the last remaining voices in Gaza conveying the tragic reality to the world,' 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.
Meanwhile PM Anthony Albanese has announced that Australia will recognise the state of Palestine in a historic move that will redefine the nation's foreign policy.
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