In the dead of night Sunday, the Israeli occupation army committed yet another massacre. A drone strike tore through a tent outside Gaza City's Al-Shifa Hospital, killing six Palestinian journalists, including Al Jazeera correspondents Anas Al-Sharif and Mohammed Qraiqea.
The attack, which survivors say came without warning, has been described by Gaza's Government Media Office as a “deliberate and barbaric crime.”
A journalist on the scene told Al Manassa the journalists had just finished a live broadcast documenting Israeli bombardment in the city and were resting when the missile struck.
“There was shelling in Al-Zaytoun neighborhood, and we were following the coverage,” the journalist said. “Then, suddenly, they targeted the tent. Flames engulfed everything.”
The blast ripped bodies apart and left others with severe burns. In the attack, six Palestinian journalists were killed instantly, including five from Al Jazeera's Gaza team and one from a neighboring tent. Civilians passing nearby were also killed, and at least three other journalists were wounded.
The lives lost in the attack include Al Jazeera cameramen Ibrahim Al Thaher and Moamen Aliwa, assistant cameraman Mohamed Nofal, and freelance journalist Mohammed Al-Khaldi.
Israeli occupation forces later claimed Al-Sharif was leading a Hamas cell in Gaza that “advanced rocket attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF troops.”, citing alleged intelligence documents found in Gaza. Anas, however, had already been subjected to Israeli threats and incitement while courageously covering the war in northern Gaza.
UN Special Rapporteur Irene Khan had previously denounced these threats, calling them a “blatant attempt to endanger his life and silence his reporting on the Gaza genocide.” Instead of evacuating, Anas remained, continuing his reporting at a time when the Israeli occupation army was physically severing the north from the south of the Strip.
During the long months of war, Anas became a beacon of truth. He was one of the last few journalists remaining in Gaza, where more than 200 of his colleagues had been killed.
His purpose went beyond reporting; he became a voice for the voiceless, documenting the war’s impact on civilians through Al Jazeera and his own digital platforms.
In a statement, Al Jazeera asserted that Anas, Mohammed, and the rest of their colleagues “persisted in the Strip to ensure the world sees the harrowing truth experienced by Gaza's populace,” despite working under constant threat and deliberate attacks that had claimed the lives of their colleagues.
The network further called the strike “another premeditated attack on press freedom,” praising its team for continuing to report amid siege, famine, and relentless bombardment. It called on the international community and all relevant organizations to “take decisive measures to halt this ongoing genocide and end the deliberate targeting of journalists.”
The Gaza Government Media Office also condemned the killing of the journalists, describing the incident as “a horrific and brutal crime.” In a statement, it asserted that the assassination was carried out with premeditation and deliberation, directly targeting the journalists’ tent in the vicinity of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
Meanwhile, the relentless violence continued across Gaza. Israeli occupation forces intensified artillery and airstrikes on Gaza City’s Al-Zaytoun neighborhood through Monday morning, pounding residential buildings and infrastructure. Ambulance crews reported receiving dozens of desperate calls but could not answer them due to the sheer intensity of the shelling.
Reports of deaths emerged from across the Strip, with Israeli airstrikes killing three members of the Abu Harbid family in northern Gaza and wiping out the entire Abu Shmala family—parents and seven children—in Khan Younis, according to hospital sources.
Gaza's Health Ministry said more than 90 bodies were brought to hospitals in the past 24 hours, with many more trapped under rubble.
The assault comes amid Israel's rejection of a second phase of a ceasefire deal brokered in January, resuming its war in Gaza while pursuing what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently described as a plan for “full military control” of the city, coupled with limited humanitarian aid outside combat zones.
According to Gaza's Media Office, the death toll for journalists has reached 238 since the war began in October, holding Israel and the US fully responsible for what it called systematic crimes against the press. The office urged international journalist unions to demand urgent protections for Palestinian reporters.
This staggering number represents not just statistics, but individuals like Anas Al-Sharif, who became a resonant voice for his people.
There was a moment, in the midst of the war, when the weight of it all became too much for Anas. While reporting on the dire state of starvation amidst active bombing, he broke down and cried in front of the camera. Instantly, he was met with a chorus of voices from off-camera, saying, “Go on Anas, go on. You’re our voice,” prompting him to pick the mic back up, and speak on behalf of his entire community.
Now, Anas is gone; his voice forever silenced by the relentless Israeli war machine.
