FOUR Al Jazeera journalists have reportedly been killed in an Israeli air strike in Gaza.
The men were all stationed inside a media tent near to Gaza City’s Al-Shifa Hospital which was targeted, according to Al Jazeera.
Correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqeh and camera operators Ibrahim Zaher and Mohammed Noufal have all been named by the publication.
The IDF confirmed it struck al-Sharif, 28, who has been one of Al Jazeera’s top reporters out in northern Gaza throughout the war.
The IDF did not mention any of the other journalists.
Israel accused al-Sharif of “serving as the head of a terrorist cell in Hamas” for some time during the war.
They said he has been posing as a journalist and claimed he is “responsible for advancing rocket attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF troops”.
Al-Sharif is believed to have been reporting on the ground via his X account in the moments before his death.
He was warning civilians in Gaza City of intense Israeli bombings.
The IDF released a statement saying: “Prior to the strike, measures were undertaken to minimize civilian harm, including employing precise munitions, conducting aerial surveillance, and gathering additional intelligence.”
Israel has already announced plans to takeover Gaza City by October 7 with them warning civilians to evacuate immediately.
Al Jazeera have been critical of Israel’s role in the 22-month conflict which has resulted in tens of thousands of civilian casualties.
They also accused the IDF of targeting their journalists who were reporting on the Strip.
This follows a report by the Committee to Protect Journalists, which stated that 186 journalists have been killed since Israel’s military offensive began in October 2023.
In July, the Al Jazeera Media Network condemned what they called the IDF’s “relentless efforts,” criticizing an “ongoing campaign of incitement against Al Jazeera’s correspondents and journalists in the Gaza Strip.”
“The Network considers this incitement a dangerous attempt to justify the targeting of its journalists in the field,” it continued.
The Sun has reached out to Al Jazeera for comment.
It comes as Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to “free Gaza from Hamas” thugs once and for all as he detailed Israel’s latest war plans on Sunday.
The defiant prime minister accused the terror group of refusing to “lay down its arms” – leaving Israel “no choice but to finish the job”.
The plan would see the IDF “dismantle” the two remaining Hamas strongholds in the central camps in Al Mawasi and Gaza City.
What is Israel’s five-step plan in Gaza?
- Disarmament of Hamas
- Return of all hostages – living and dead
- Demilitarisation of the Gaza Strip
- Israeli security control over Gaza
- Creation of a new civil administration that excludes both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority
Netanyahu announced: “We have about 70 to 75 per cent of Gaza under Israeli control, military control.
“Last Thursday, Israel’s cabinet and security cabinet directed the IDF to eliminate the two remaining Hamas strongholds in Gaza City and the central camps.”
He added this is “the best way to end the war”.
After Hamas is wiped out and Gaza becomes demilitarised, the PM says Israel will maintain “security responsibility”.
A “non-Israeli civilian administration” will be established in Gaza within 24 hours, he added.
The gruelling war has left unimaginable pain across Gaza for the Palestinian people still trapped along the Strip.
The conflict was sparked when Hamas attacked Israeli civilians on October 7.
They took 251 hostages during the assault with 49 still being held in Gaza – including 27 who the IDF say are dead.
The return of all hostages, whether alive or deceased, is a non-negotiable aspect of the plan, with Israel accusing Hamas of using them as leverage.
Israeli leaders have stressed that no resolution will be accepted to end the war unless it includes the return of every captive.
