CPJ said it has documented the killing of at least seven journalists and media workers affiliated with Al Jazeera.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has called for the protection of Al Jazeera correspondent in northern Gaza Anas Al-Sharif following an incitement campaign by Israel as part of a wider targeting of the broadcaster.
In a statement on Monday, CPJ expressed its “deep concern” over Al-Sharif’s safety after the Israeli military’s Arabic spokesperson Avichay Adraee accused him of “presenting a lie” during his coverage of the August 10 massacre in a school-turned-shelter.
At the time, Israel killed more than 100 people, mostly women and children, who were sheltering in the Al-Tabin School in the Daraj neighbourhood of Gaza City during Fajr prayer.
The Israeli military was quick to justify the attack, alleging that it had “received clear intelligence” regarding the presence of 19 Hamas fighters on the ground—claims that have been dismissed by Hamas.
In a post on X, Adraee accused Al-Sharif and Al Jazeera of “covering up the crimes of Hamas and Jihad by taking shelter inside schools,” echoing Israeli allegations made against the network and to justify the killings of Palestinians.
“We are deeply concerned about the safety of Al Jazeera’s northern Gaza correspondent Anas Al Sharif after the IDF’s claim that he was ‘covering up’ for Hamas and Islamic Jihad after Israel killed dozens in its Saturday strike on a Gaza City school complex,” Carlos Martinez de la Serna, CPJ’s Program Director, said on Monday.
“Al Jazeera journalists have been paying a devastating price for documenting the war. They and all journalists should be protected and allowed to work freely,” he stressed.
The Qatar-based network had condemned Israel’s “act of intimidation and incitement” against its journalist in a statement on Saturday, describing it as “a clear attempt to stifle the truth” of those reporting from Gaza.
“Anas has seen the aftermath of horrific events, including the killing of over 100 civilians today, and yet, he continues to report with integrity and courage,” it added, calling on the international community to stand in solidarity with Al-Sharif and all journalists covering the reality in Gaza.
Al Jazeera reiterated its commitment to supporting its journalists in their coverage despite the dangers they face on the ground, noting that it “will not be intimidated.”
“We hold the Israeli government fully responsible for Anas’s safety and warn that this rhetoric signals an intention to target him, just as they did with Ismail Al Ghoul and Rami Al Rifi, in a bid to conceal the truth of what is happening in Gaza,” it added.
Al Jazeera was referring to its journalist and cameraman who were killed on July 31 in a direct Israeli airstrike on their vehicle in the Al-Shati refugee camp, hours after Israel killed Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh.
Israeli occupation forces alleged that Al-Ghoul was a “Hamas military wing” operative, admitting that they deliberately targeted him.
Al Jazeera then refuted the “baseless allegations” by Israeli occupation forces, highlighting Israel’s “long history of fabrications and false evidence used to cover up its heinous crimes.”
Al-Sharif had received numerous threats from Israel over his journalism coverage of its genocidal war in the Gaza Strip, where it killed nearly 40,000 Palestinians.
His father was also killed on December 11, 2023 in an Israeli airstrike on his home in Jabalia.
The targeting of Al-Sharif falls under a wider pattern of Israel’s targeting of Al Jazeera for its in-depth coverage of the suffering of Palestinians under Israeli occupation, especially throughout the war in the Gaza Strip.
CPJ said it has documented the killing of at least seven journalists and media workers affiliated with Al Jazeera.
Israel killed Al Jazeera’s cameraman Samer Abu Daqqa and severely injured the network’s journalist and Gaza bureau chief Wael Dahdouh in a missile strike on December 15 in Khan Younis.
Abu Daqqa succumbed to his injuries after being left to bleed for six hours after Israeli forces prevented medics from reaching him with nonstop shelling.
Israel then killed Dahdouh’s eldest son, Hamza, on January 7 in a direct missile strike that targeted a car transporting journalists in Khan Younis.
This came after Israel killed four members of Dahdouh’s family on October 25, 2023, including his wife, 15-year-old son, seven-year-old daughter and infant grandson.
Meanwhile, in May, the Israeli government unanimously voted to shut down Al Jazeera’s local bureau and extended the ban on July 21 for 45 additional days.
Israel has killed at least 168 Palestinian journalists since the beginning of the brutal war in the Gaza Strip.
