Israel Says It Killed Al Jazeera Reporter Linked to Hamas (Worthy News Investigation)
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – Israel confirmed Monday it killed a controversial reporter of Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera in a targeted air strike in Gaza, describing him as a Hamas terror cell leader.
Anas al-Sharif, 28, and four other Al Jazeera journalists were killed in Sunday’s drone attack on a press tent positioned outside the main gate of Gaza City’s al-Shifa Hospital, Al Jazeera said.
Among the dead were Al Jazeera correspondent Mohammed Qreiqeh and camera operators Ibrahim Zaher, Moamen Aliwa, and Mohammed Noufal, the broadcaster added. Two others were also killed, including a freelance journalist.
The United Nations human rights office called the Israeli attack that killed six journalists in Gaza “a grave breach of international law.”
However, Israel’s military said it specifically targeted al-Sharif because he had “served as the head of a terrorist cell in Hamas” — an accusation he had denied.
Israel did not immediately provide evidence to support its claims. Yet, several sources confirmed that al-Sharif did some work with a Hamas media team in Gaza before the current conflict.
SOCIAL MEDIA POST
A Worthy News investigation also linked him to a social media post allegedly written on October 7, 2023, during Hamas’ massacre of some 1,200 people in Israel. “9 hours and the heroes are still roaming the country, killing and capturing. God, God how great you are!” he purportedly wrote.
With “God,” he likely meant Allah, the Arabic word for a higher power. The post, reportedly from a deleted Telegram message, has not been confirmed by major news outlets.
According to the same Worthy News investigation, there have been protests in Gaza against Al Jazeera in which demonstrators mentioned al-Sharif, accusing him and the broadcaster of operating from hospitals instead of covering anti-Hamas protests.
Al Jazeera calls his killing part of a campaign to silence independent reporting from Gaza, where foreign journalists are allowed in only under strict Israeli military escort and where an army censor decides what can be published.
Israel has long accused the Qatar-funded network of acting as a propaganda and intelligence arm for Hamas, which has received support from the Qatari government.
On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused foreign media, including Al Jazeera, of echoing Hamas’ narrative.
GAZA HUNGER STORY
Netanyahu threatened to sue The New York Times newspaper over its recent use of a photo of an emaciated child in a Gaza hunger story, saying the child was sick, not starving.
The Times later apologized for using the photo, but that was apparently not enough for Netanyahu.
Israel also blames al-Sharif for exaggerating the crisis, with a military spokesperson last month calling his reports a “fabricated drama.”
Nearly 200 journalists have been killed in Gaza during the current war, according to local counts. It is unclear how many Hamas operatives were among them. However, the latest deaths of journalists reportedly plunged many Palestinians into mourning.
Al-Sharif’s killing has also drawn sharp reaction across the Arab world, where officials recalled the 2022 killing of veteran Al-Jazeera correspondent Shireen Abu Akleh, allegedly by Israeli forces in Jenin.
Israel later said there was a “high possibility” that Israeli gunfire had “accidentally” hit Abu Akleh while she was at the Jenin refugee camp, where Israeli forces carried out military strikes against Hamas.
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