The U.S. State Department has echoed Israel’s unproven claims to justify the killing of Al Jazeera journalist Anas Al-Sharif in Gaza, offering no condemnation.
U.S. State Department Spokesperson, Tammy Bruce, has echoed Israel’s justification for the killing of Al Jazeera journalist Anas Al-Sharif in the Gaza Strip, citing unverified claims that the slain journalist, who reported on the genocide and starvation, had ties to Hamas.
Speaking at a press briefing on Tuesday, Bruce alleged that Israel had “the evidence” against Al-Sharif, offering no proof, and condemnation of its top ally’s repeated targeting of journalists in Gaza.
“What I will tell you is that we refer you to Israel for information regarding Al-Sharif. Israel has released evidence that Al-Sharif was part of Hamas and was supportive of the Hamas attack on October 7,” Bruce said.
“They’re the ones who have the evidence,” she added.
Bruce also alleged that “Hamas historically has had members who are embedded in society, including posing as journalists.”
Israel deliberately killed Al-Sharif along with four of his colleagues on Sunday following months of incitement against him over his coverage of the blockade, deliberate starvation, and mass killings in the territory.
Israel justified the killing by alleging that Al-Sharif was a member of Hamas’s military wing—a common allegation it has used to justify its killing of civilians in the Gaza Strip.
Al Jazeera condemned the assassination of its crew, highlighting Israel’s “desperate attempt” to silence those exposing its crimes during the genocide in the Gaza Strip.
“The order to assassinate Anas Al-Sharif, one of Gaza’s bravest journalists, and his colleagues, is a desperate attempt to silence the voices exposing the impending seizure and occupation of Gaza,” the Qatar-based network said in a statement.
The killing of the journalists was met with global outrage and condemnations, including by Qatar, which has been a key mediator between Hamas and Israel.
In a post on X on Monday, Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, slammed the targeting of the journalists.
“The deliberate targeting of journalists by Israel in the Gaza Strip reveals how these crimes are beyond imagination, amid the inability of the [international] community [and] its laws to stop this tragedy. May God have mercy on journalists Anas Al-Sharif, Mohammed Qraiqea, [and] their colleagues,” he said.
Al-Sharif and his colleagues became known for their courage in covering Israel’s harrowing crimes in the Gaza Strip, including the daily airstrikes and the starvation of Palestinians in the territory.
Israel has targeted the press since it waged the genocide in the Gaza Strip, killing at least 238 journalists.
The journalists are among more than 61,700 Palestinians killed in the blockaded territory over the past 22 months, with thousands of others trapped under the rubble. Israel has also starved 235 people to death, including 106 children, according to the latest figures by Gaza’s health ministry.
