Latest news with #JournalistsKilled
Al Jazeera
6 days ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Protests, vigils held worldwide over Israel's killing of Gaza journalists
Protests and vigils have taken place around the world in support of Palestinians suffering in Gaza and to pay tribute to the four Al Jazeera journalists and two freelancers killed by Israel in the besieged enclave in a deliberate targeted assassination on Sunday. Journalists, students, activists and members of civil society – notably in Cape Town, South Africa; Manila, the Philippines; and London, the United Kingdom – held the protests on Wednesday to call on their governments to put pressure on Israel to allow international media into Gaza and bring an end to Israel's genocidal war there. Late on Sunday, Al Jazeera correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqeh, along with cameramen Ibrahim Zaher and Mohammed Noufal, were killed in an Israeli strike that had targeted their media tent located by al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. Al-Sharif had been one of Gaza's most recognisable faces for his constant reporting of the reality on the ground since Israel's war on Gaza began following the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attacks on southern Israel. A post shared by AJ+ (@ajplus) Israel's war on Gaza has killed at least 61,722 people and wounded 154,525. An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the October 7, 2023, attacks in southern Israel, and more than 200 were taken captive. Nearly 270 Palestinian journalists and media workers have been killed by Israel since the war began. South Africa Members of civil society and journalists gathered at St George's Cathedral in Cape Town on Wednesday to express their anger at al-Sharif's murder, sporting placards with one reading 'your voice was louder than their bombs'. The location is significant, said Al Jazeera's Fahmida Miller, reporting from Cape Town, as 'it's been an important signal against oppression here in South Africa, especially during the decades of apartheid'. The people gathered here 'have condemned what Israel has done', Miller said. 'They want the entry of international journalists into Gaza in addition to the work being done by Palestinian journalists,' she said. 'People here are angry.' Journalist Zubeida Jaffer told Miller, 'I was one of the journalists who were targeted, you know those media that documented apartheid, so this really resonates with me.' Miller said, 'The South African government has previously condemned the killing of journalists in Gaza, specifically in 2022 when Shireen Abu Akleh was killed. The South African government had said it was a violation of international law.' Abu Akleh was a Palestinian-American journalist who worked as a reporter for 25 years for Al Jazeera, before she was killed by Israeli forces while covering a raid on the Jenin refugee camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. In December 2023, South Africa brought a case before the International Court of Justice, accusing Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip. United Kingdom Reporters belonging to the UK branches of the National Union of Journalists paid their respects on Wednesday to the slain Al Jazeera workers outside the prime minister's residence at Number 10 Downing Street, said Al Jazeera's Jonah Hull, reporting from London. The reporters, holding placards bearing the names of journalists killed since Israel's war on Gaza began, read out the names of each journalist that appeared on their placard and 'symbolically, recited Islamic funeral prayers' for those killed on Sunday, said Hull. Those present 'have really condemned the British government … talking about its complicity in what is going on in Gaza, for not doing more and speaking out more,' said Hull. While British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday 'talked about his grave concern' about the killings of the Al Jazeera journalists, those present on Wednesday 'want outright condemnation and nothing less', said Hull. 'They also want the government to take firm steps to pressure the Israeli government to ensure the safety of journalists in Gaza, importantly to allow international journalists into Gaza to be able to work freely there and for an independent investigation to be carried out by the International Criminal Court in order to provide justice and accountability for those involved.' Last week, Starmer condemned Israel's plans to take over Gaza City, saying they were 'wrong' and 'will only bring more bloodshed'. He has also announced that the UK will recognise a Palestinian state in September unless Israel meets certain conditions, including agreeing to a ceasefire in Gaza and reviving the prospect of a two-state solution. Philippines Students, campus journalists and activists gathered at the University of the Philippines on Wednesday to express outrage at the killing of the Al Jazeera journalists. They say 'the attack … is a deliberate cover-up by Israel of its crimes against humanity' in the Gaza Strip, said Al Jazeera's Barnaby Lo, reporting from Manila. 'They also describe the accusation that Anas al-Sharif, one of the most prominent voices reporting from within Gaza, is a member of Hamas is baseless,' said Lo, noting that protesters say 'this is an age-old tactic used by governments who are bent on silencing the truth'. 'Any imperialist power … will choose a scapegoat to use as a pretext, however false it is,' campus journalist Karl Patrick Suyat told Lo. These protesters also gathered to urge 'the international community to ramp up pressure on Israel to stop its genocide, including for the Philippine government to cut its trade and defence ties with Israel', said Lo. The Philippines is the third-largest importer of Israeli weapons. In June, the Philippines voted in favour of a United Nations General Assembly resolution demanding an immediate and lasting ceasefire in Gaza. This resolution also condemned Israel's use of starvation as a weapon of war and called for Israel to lift its blockade on humanitarian aid in Gaza. Israel A small group of local and international journalists took part in a vigil in Tel Aviv on Wednesday. 'Unfortunately, the vast majority of Israeli society and some mainstream journalists were celebrating this assassination, this targeted killing' of the Al Jazeera journalists, Oren Ziv, an Israeli journalist working at the independent +972 Magazine, told Al Jazeera from Tel Aviv. Ziv explained that he and others wanted to hold this vigil because they 'wanted to express our anger and solidarity with the Palestinian journalists in Gaza that are doing an incredible job under very hard circumstances. And we also wanted to show that there are people here that oppose these targeted killings and assassinations.' Ziv added that he believes Israel deliberately targeted these journalists. 'We think this [targeted killing] happens not by mistake but as a step to try to silence the only journalists that are there reporting to us, to international media, they're the only voice we have there as Israel has blocked international media for almost two years from entering the Gaza Strip.' And that the timing of the assassinations was not coincidental. 'I think it's done on purpose ahead of the so-called occupation of Gaza City to make sure nobody is there to document and pass to the world these voices and images from there.' Last week, Israel's security cabinet approved a plan by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the military occupation of Gaza City, located in the north of the Palestinian enclave.
Al Jazeera
6 days ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Protests, vigils held around globe for Gaza, assassinated journalists
Protests and vigils have taken place around the world in support of Palestinians suffering in Gaza and to pay tribute to the four Al Jazeera journalists and two freelancers killed by Israel in the besieged enclave in a deliberate targeted assassination on Sunday. Journalists, students, activists and members of civil society – notably in Cape Town, South Africa; Manila, the Philippines; and London, the United Kingdom – held the protests on Wednesday to call on their governments to put pressure on Israel to allow international media into Gaza and bring an end to Israel's genocidal war there. Late on Sunday, Al Jazeera correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqeh, along with cameramen Ibrahim Zaher and Mohammed Noufal, were killed in an Israeli strike that had targeted their media tent located by al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. Al-Sharif had been one of Gaza's most recognisable faces for his constant reporting of the reality on the ground since Israel's war on Gaza began following the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attacks on southern Israel. A post shared by AJ+ (@ajplus) Israel's war on Gaza has killed at least 61,722 people and wounded 154,525. An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the October 7, 2023, attacks in southern Israel, and more than 200 were taken captive. Nearly 270 Palestinian journalists and media workers have been killed by Israel since the war began. South Africa Members of civil society and journalists gathered at St George's Cathedral in Cape Town on Wednesday to express their anger at al-Sharif's murder, sporting placards with one reading 'your voice was louder than their bombs'. The location is significant, said Al Jazeera's Fahmida Miller, reporting from Cape Town, as 'it's been an important signal against oppression here in South Africa, especially during the decades of apartheid'. The people gathered here 'have condemned what Israel has done', Miller said. 'They want the entry of international journalists into Gaza in addition to the work being done by Palestinian journalists,' she said. 'People here are angry.' Journalist Zubeida Jaffer told Miller, 'I was one of the journalists who were targeted, you know those media that documented apartheid, so this really resonates with me.' Miller said, 'The South African government has previously condemned the killing of journalists in Gaza, specifically in 2022 when Shireen Abu Akleh was killed. The South African government had said it was a violation of international law.' Abu Akleh was a Palestinian-American journalist who worked as a reporter for 25 years for Al Jazeera, before she was killed by Israeli forces while covering a raid on the Jenin refugee camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. In December 2023, South Africa brought a case before the International Court of Justice, accusing Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip. United Kingdom Reporters belonging to the UK branches of the National Union of Journalists paid their respects on Wednesday to the slain Al Jazeera workers outside the prime minister's residence at Number 10 Downing Street, said Al Jazeera's Jonah Hull, reporting from London. The reporters, holding placards bearing the names of journalists killed since Israel's war on Gaza began, read out the names of each journalist that appeared on their placard and 'symbolically, recited Islamic funeral prayers' for those killed on Sunday, said Hull. Those present 'have really condemned the British government … talking about its complicity in what is going on in Gaza, for not doing more and speaking out more,' said Hull. While British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday 'talked about his grave concern' about the killings of the Al Jazeera journalists, those present on Wednesday 'want outright condemnation and nothing less', said Hull. 'They also want the government to take firm steps to pressure the Israeli government to ensure the safety of journalists in Gaza, importantly to allow international journalists into Gaza to be able to work freely there and for an independent investigation to be carried out by … the International Criminal Court in order to provide justice and accountability for those involved.' Last week, Starmer condemned Israel's plans to take over Gaza City, saying they were 'wrong' and 'will only bring more bloodshed'. He has also announced that the UK will recognise a Palestinian state in September unless Israel meets certain conditions, including agreeing to a ceasefire in Gaza and reviving the prospect of a two-state solution. Philippines Students, campus journalists and activists gathered at the University of the Philippines on Wednesday to express outrage at the killing of the Al Jazeera journalists. They say 'the attack … is a deliberate cover-up by Israel of its crimes against humanity' in the Gaza Strip, said Al Jazeera's Barnaby Lo, reporting from Manila. 'They also describe the accusation that Anas al-Sharif, one of the most prominent voices reporting from within Gaza, is a member of Hamas is baseless,' said Lo, noting that protesters say 'this is an age-old tactic used by governments who are bent on silencing the truth'. 'Any imperialist power … will choose a scapegoat to use as a pretext, however false it is,' campus journalist Karl Patrick Suyat told Lo. These protesters also gathered to urge 'the international community to ramp up pressure on Israel to stop its genocide, including for the Philippine government to cut its trade and defence ties with Israel', said Lo. The Philippines is the third-largest importer of Israeli weapons. In June, the Philippines voted in favour of a United Nations General Assembly resolution demanding an immediate and lasting ceasefire in Gaza. This resolution also condemned Israel's use of starvation as a weapon of war and called for Israel to lift its blockade on humanitarian aid in Gaza.
Malay Mail
6 days ago
- Politics
- Malay Mail
Al Jazeera revises Gaza death toll: Four staff, two freelancers killed in Israeli strike
DOHA, Aug 13 — A recent Israeli strike killed four Al Jazeera journalists and two freelancers, the news channel said Tuesday, clarifying that four of the six dead were staff and not five as initially reported. The Qatar-based broadcaster had originally reported its correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqeh and camera operators Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal and Moamen Aliwa were killed in the Israeli attack on Sunday. But in a corrected report on its English-language website, Al Jazeera clarified that Moamen Aliwa worked as a freelance cameraman, adding that the sixth journalist slain in the attack, Mohammed al-Khalidi, was also a freelancer. 'An earlier version of this story referred to Israel killing five Al Jazeera staff. The number of Al Jazeera journalists Israel killed was four,' Al Jazeera's statement read. The attack on the journalists' tent in Gaza City in the north of the Palestinian territory provoked international outrage and condemnation from journalists' groups. The Israeli military confirmed that it had carried out the attack on Sharif, one of the most recognisable faces on the channel, claiming that he was a 'terrorist' who 'posed as a journalist'. Al Jazeera condemned the killings and dismissed accusations against Sharif saying the Israeli strike followed 'repeated incitement and calls by multiple Israeli officials and spokespersons to target the fearless journalist Anas Al Sharif and his colleagues'. With Gaza sealed off, many media groups around the world, including AFP, depend on photo, video and text coverage of the conflict provided by local Palestinian reporters. Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said in early July that more than 200 journalists had been killed in Gaza since the war began, including several Al Jazeera journalists. — AFP
South China Morning Post
6 days ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Al Jazeera revises number of staff killed in Israeli attack to 4
A recent Israeli strike killed four Al Jazeera journalists and two freelancers, the news channel said on Tuesday, clarifying that four of the six dead were staff and not five as initially reported. The Qatar-based broadcaster had originally reported its correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqeh and camera operators Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal and Moamen Aliwa were killed in the Israeli attack on Sunday. But in a corrected report on its English-language website, Al Jazeera clarified that Moamen Aliwa worked as a freelance cameraman, adding that the sixth journalist slain in the attack, Mohammed al-Khalidi, was also a freelancer. 'An earlier version of this story referred to Israel killing five Al Jazeera staff. The number of Al Jazeera journalists Israel killed was four,' Al Jazeera's statement read. The attack on the journalists' tent in Gaza City in the north of the Palestinian territory provoked international outrage and condemnation from journalists' groups. The Israeli military confirmed that it had carried out the attack on Sharif, one of the most recognisable faces on the channel, claiming that he was a 'terrorist' who 'posed as a journalist'.
Al Jazeera
11-08-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Israel kills Anas al-Sharif and four Al Jazeera staff in Gaza: What we know
Late on Sunday, an Israel strike shook al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, targeting a journalists' tent by the gate. As people rushed to help, it became apparent that five Al Jazeera staff had been killed, including Anas al-Sharif, one of the most famous faces of Arabic reporting from Gaza. Why did Israel want to kill journalists? What happened that night? Here's what we know: Who were the five Al Jazeera staff Israel killed? Al Jazeera correspondent Anas al-Sharif, 28, was one of Gaza's most recognisable faces for his constant reporting of the reality on the ground over the last 22 months. The father of two was born in Jabalia refugee camp and graduated from Al-Aqsa University's Faculty of Media. His father was killed by Israel in an air strike on the family home in December 2023. Al Jazeera correspondent Mohammed Qreiqeh, 33, made his last live report on air only shortly before his assassination, speaking in his trademark eloquent manner. Qreiqeh was born in Gaza City in 1992 and lived in the Shujayea neighbourhood. He earned a BA in journalism and media at the Islamic University of Gaza. Israel killed his brother, Karim, in March in an air attack on Gaza City. Al Jazeera cameraman Ibrahim Zaher, 25, was from Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza. Al Jazeera cameraman Mohammed Noufal, 29, was also from Jabalia. He lost his mother and one brother in earlier Israeli attacks. His other brother, Ibrahim, also works as a cameraman for Al Jazeera. What were they doing when they were killed? They were working. The team was in a tent by the main gate of Gaza City's al-Shifa Hospital late on Sunday evening. The tent was where they worked, as journalists in Gaza have gathered at hospitals to seek better electricity and internet connections, a fact that has been well-known since the start of Israel's war on Gaza. 'I'm not far from al-Shifa Hospital, just one block away, and I could hear the massive explosion that took place in the past half an hour or so, near al-Shifa Hospital,' Al Jazeera's Hani Mahmoud reported yesterday. 'I could see it when it lit up the sky and, within moments, the news circulated that it was the journalist camp at the main gate of the al-Shifa Hospital.' What happened? Al Jazeera's reporter Hani al-Shaer said an Israeli drone hit the journalists' tent at approximately 11:35pm (20:35 GMT) on Sunday night. Shortly before being killed, al-Sharif wrote on X that Israel had launched intense, concentrated bombardment – also known as 'fire belts' – on the eastern and southern parts of Gaza City. Journalist Amer al-Sultan was in a neighbouring tent when the attack took place. 'I came to the scene and saw all the destruction,' al-Sultan said, standing amid the tent's wreckage, his back to a concrete wall pocked and splattered from the attack. '[I thought] all our colleagues were martyred.' Al-Sultan added that he wasn't sure who the journalists were who were in the tent, but 'when I started filming, I saw our colleagues Anas al-Sharif was on the ground and Mohammed Qreiqeh, who was on fire. 'We started to pull him out and try to put out the fire.' The people gathered there tried to get Qreiqeh inside al-Shifa Hospital, but he succumbed to his wounds before they could get him treatment, al-Sultan said. Mohammed Qeita, a freelance journalist, was also nearby. 'I was not just a witness to the event, I was part of it…The fire was very strong. 'Even now, I can't believe it,' he said. 'We knew Anas was the target… He was our voice.' How did Israel explain deliberately killing journalists? It said one of them wasn't really a journalist. Israel's army posted about deliberately killing the journalists, claiming it had wanted to kill al-Sharif, who it accused of being an armed commander for Hamas only posing as a journalist. In the statement, it accused al-Sharif of 'advancing rocket attacks against Israeli civilians and troops' and alleged it had documents providing 'unequivocal proof' of this. Muhammad Shehada, an analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said there was 'zero evidence' that al-Sharif took part in any hostilities. 'His entire daily routine was standing in front of a camera from morning to evening,' he told Al Jazeera. On numerous occasions over the last 22 months, Israel has justified killing reporters by claiming they belonged to armed groups. Groups focused on press freedom and media workers' rights have said for months that Israel is deliberately targeting journalists in Gaza. Two of the most prominent incidents included journalist Hamza Dahdouh, son of Al Jazeera's Gaza Bureau Chief Wael Dahdouh, and journalist Hossam Shabat, who were both assassinated by Israel and accused of being members of Hamas without any evidence. What did Al Jazeera say? Al Jazeera called the killing of its staff a 'targeted assassination … in yet another blatant and premeditated attack on press freedom'. It said the journalists 'were among the last remaining voices from within Gaza, providing the world with unfiltered, on-the-ground coverage of the devastating realities endured by its people'. Israel has banned international media from entering Gaza since October 2023, but 'Al Jazeera journalists remained within besieged Gaza … [delivering] searing eyewitness accounts of the horrors unleashed over 22 months of relentless bombing and destruction,' the statement said. Why did Israel want to assassinate Anas al-Sharif? Al-Sharif was the face of Al Jazeera Arabic in Gaza and of iconic moments as he reported on Israel's atrocities in the besieged, bombarded enclave. For months, Israeli officials had threatened him, demanding that he stop reporting, but he refused, pledging to stay in northern Gaza and continue his coverage. Numerous rights groups and press freedom groups called for al-Sharif's protection after he was directly threatened by Israel. Israel ramped up a smear campaign on al-Sharif in recent months, with army spokesperson Avichay Adraee calling out al-Sharif by name in a video on X last month, accusing him of being part of Hamas's military wing. Irene Khan, UN special rapporteur on freedom of expression, said last month that Adraee made 'an unsubstantiated claim' and called the smear a 'blatant assault on journalists'. Israel killing al-Sharif was a targeted attempt to shut down coverage of its atrocities, former Executive Director of Human Rights Watch Ken Roth said. 'This is not an accidental killing. This is not a journalist who happened to get caught in Israel's indoctrinate bombardment of Palestinian civilians in general. 'This was a targeted killing,' Roth told Al Jazeera. The Committee to Protect Journalists says 186 journalists have been killed since October 2023, though authorities in Gaza put estimates closer to 270.
