Israeli airstrikes have killed five Palestinian journalists in the Gaza Strip who worked for the local Quds News Network. The Israeli military says it was targeting militants from Islamic Jihad, an organization affiliated with Hamas.
advertisementThe Gaza Health Ministry reported early Thursday that Israeli airstrikes killed five Palestinian journalists overnight outside a hospital in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli military said the attack targeted an extremist group.
The attack hit a vehicle outside Al-Awda Hospital in Nuseyrat refugee camp in central Gaza. The victims were journalists working for the local Quds News Network.
The Israeli military said it was targeting a group of militants from the Islamic Jihad, an extremist group allied with Hamas.
Associated Press footage showed the incinerated remains of the van, with press marks still visible on the back door.
A funeral was held outside the hospital on Thursday, with several young people gathered, many in tears as the body was laid out. The journalist’s body was wrapped in a white shroud and a blue press vest was placed over it.
More than 130 Palestinian journalists have been killed since the war began last October, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Another International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) report released in early December estimates that Palestine has become the most dangerous place on earth for journalists over the past year.
Israel restricts foreign journalists from entering Gaza, except for military presence.
Israel also banned the pan-Arab news network Al Jazeera and accused six of its Gaza-based journalists of being extremists. The Qatar-based network denies these accusations, claiming that Israel is trying to suppress reporting that focuses on the heavy toll on civilians caused by Israeli military operations.
In a separate incident, the Israeli military announced early Thursday that a 35-year-old reservist had died during fighting in central Gaza. 389 Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza since Israel’s ground operations began more than a year ago.
The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants crossed the border and launched surprise attacks targeting nearby army bases and rural villages. Approximately 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed in this attack, and approximately 250 people were abducted. There are still about 100 hostages in Gaza, and at least a third are believed to have died.
The ensuing Israeli air and ground operations left more than 45,000 Palestinians dead, according to the Health Ministry. More than half of the dead were reported to be women and children, but the ministry did not say how many fighters there were. Israel claims to have killed more than 17,000 militants, but no evidence has been presented.
The conflict caused widespread destruction and displaced approximately 90% of the Gaza Strip’s 2.3 million residents. Hundreds of thousands of people are currently living in overcrowded tent camps along the coast, enduring harsh conditions with little protection from the cold, wet winter.
