Israel has targeted a broadcast van close to a hospital in central Gaza, killing at least five journalists, according to Palestinian authorities and media reports.
The journalists from the al-Quds Today channel were covering events near al-Awda Hospital, located in the Nuseirat refugee camp, when their broadcasting van was hit by an Israeli air strike, Al Jazeera’s Anas al-Sharif reported early on Thursday morning.
Footage from the scene circulating on social media shows a vehicle engulfed in flames.
A screenshot taken from a video of the white-coloured van shows the word “press” in large red lettering across the back of the vehicle.
The deceased journalists have been named as Fadi Hassouna, Ibrahim al-Sheikh Ali, Mohammed al-Ladah, Faisal Abu al-Qumsan and Ayman al-Jadi.
Al Jazeera’s al-Sharif said that Ayman al-Jadi had been waiting for his wife in front of the hospital while she was in labour to give birth to their first child.
Breaking: Five journalists lost their lives after their vehicle was incinerated in an Israeli airstrike targeting the broadcasting van of “Al-Quds Today” channel while covering events near Al-Awda Hospital in the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip. pic.twitter.com/oiAmxgZwO5
— أنس الشريف Anas Al-Sharif (@AnasAlSharif0) December 26, 2024
Civil defence teams retrieved the bodies of the victims and extinguished a fire at the scene, the Quds News Network said.
Israel’s military said it had carried out a “targeted” attack against a vehicle carrying members of Islamic Jihad and that it would continue to take action against “terrorist organisations” in Gaza.
“Prior to the attack, many steps were taken to reduce the chance of harming civilians, including the use of precision weapons, aerial observations, and additional intelligence information,” the military said in a post on X.
Israel, which has not allowed foreign journalists to enter the Gaza Strip except on military embeds, has been condemned by several press freedom organisations, which now rate the Strip as the most dangerous part of the world for reporting.
Earlier this month, Paris-based Reporters Without Borders said more than 145 journalists had been killed by the Israeli army in Gaza since the start of the war in October 2023, condemning the high death toll as an “unprecedented massacre”.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said this month that at least 141 journalists have been killed in Gaza, calling on the international community to hold Israel accountable for its attacks against the media.
CPJ said on Thursday that it was “devastated” by reports of the five journalists killed inside their broadcasting vehicle. “Journalists are civilians and must always be protected,” it said on X.
The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate last week reported a higher death toll, stating that more than 190 journalists had been killed and at least 400 injured since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza.
The syndicate condemned the “heinous attack” and called for “international protection” for journalists in Gaza.
The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate condemns the targeting of journalists in Gaza and calls for international protection. Five journalists were martyred in a heinous attack on Al-Quds Today TV's broadcast vehicle.#Nuseirat #Gaza
Details: https://t.co/guf8t1dVOU pic.twitter.com/qYncJfBZb8— نقابة الصحفيين Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (@InfoPJS) December 26, 2024
Israel also banned Al Jazeera from its territory and accused six of its Gaza reporters of being members of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
The network vehemently condemned the “unfounded allegations” and said Israel had used “fabricated accusations … to silence the few remaining journalists in the region, thereby obscuring the harsh realities of the war from audiences worldwide”.
