Five journalists among 20 killed in Israeli strikes on hospital

At least 20 people, including five journalists working for international media sources, have been killed by Israeli strikes on the main hospital in southern Gaza today.

Israel carried out an initial attack on Nasser Hospital with an explosive drone. While rescue workers and journalists rushed to the site and medical workers frantically attempted to evacuate the wounded, a second airstrike hit.

Live footage captured by Alghad TV shows several emergency workers responding to the first strike as journalists document the scene in the background behind them. In the video, the second strike directly hits the responders and journalists.

Reuters confirmed that its cameraman Hussam al-Masri was killed. Al-Masri had been operating a live TV feed on the hospital's roof, which shut down when the initial strike hit. Contracted photographer Hatem Khaled was severely injured while filming the second strike.

"We are devastated to learn of the death of Reuters contractor Hussam al-Masri and injuries to another of our contractors, Hatem Khaled, in Israeli strikes on the Nasser hospital in Gaza today," said a Reuters spokesperson in a statement.

"We are urgently seeking more information and have asked authorities in Gaza and Israel to help us get urgent medical assistance for Hatem."

Freelance photographer Moaz Abu Taha, whose work had been published by Reuters before, was also killed.

Associated Press confirmed the death of freelancer Mariam Abu Daqqa. Daqqa, whose 13-year-old son was evacuated from Gaza, had recently reported on the doctors at Nasser Hospital who were struggling to save young children with no pre-existing conditions who were dying of starvation amid a lack of sufficient medicine and supplies.

"We are doing everything we can to keep our journalists in Gaza safe as they continue to provide crucial eyewitness reporting in difficult and dangerous conditions," said Associated Press in a statement.

Middle East Eye said freelance journalist Ahmad Abu Aziz died from his injuries in the strike, alongside cameraman Mohammad Salama, who worked for both Middle East Eye and Al Jazeera.

The news came only two weeks after a team of Al Jazeera journalists were killed by Israeli strikes near Gaza City's Al-Shifa Hospital. Al Jazeera condemned today's attack as "a clear intent to bury the truth."

"The blood of our martyred journalists in Gaza has not yet dried before the Israeli occupation forces committed another crime against Al Jazeera cameraman Mohammed Salama, together with three other photojournalists," said Al Jazeera in a statement today.

"Despite relentless targeting, Al Jazeera remains resolute in providing live coverage of the Israeli genocide in Gaza for the past 23 months, with occupation authorities barring international media outlets from entering to report on the war."

After the attacks on the Al Jazeera team at Al-Shifa Hospital, the IDF confirmed that Al Sharif, a prominent frontline reporter, was targeted. The IDF had made unsubstantiated claims that Al Sharif was a Hamas operative, a narrative that Al Jazeera and various human rights organisations argued is a lie created to justify Israel's killing of Palestinian journalists.

Simiarly, Israeli tabloid newspaper Israel Hayom claimed an unnamed "security source" told them today that the reason for the attack was "the presence of a camera on the hospital roof, which Hamas members were using to document IDF forces," adding that the IDF "received permission to neutralize the camera, but the incident escalated into a wider incident."

Various international news sources often broadcast live video feeds during major news events, including the Reuters TV feed, which was filmed just below the roof of Nasser Hospital for the past several weeks. Al-Masri was operating the broadcast when it suddenly shut off at the initial strike.

In a statement confirming it carried out an attack in the area, the IDF claimed it "regrets any harm to uninvolved individuals and does not target journalists as such" and said there will be an "initial inquiry" following the strike.

At least 196 journalists and media workers have been killed by Israeli attacks in Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

"Israel’s broadcasted killing of journalists in Gaza continues while the world watches and fails to act firmly on the most horrific attacks the press has ever faced in recent history," said CPJ Regional Director Sara Qudah in a statement today.

"These murders must end now. The perpetrators must no longer be allowed to act with impunity."

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus condemned the attacks, which also damaged many of the primary healthcare facilities in the hospital.

"While people in Gaza are being starved, their already limited access to health care is being further crippled by repeated attacks," said Ghebreyesus in a post on X.

"We cannot say it loudly enough: STOP attacks on health care. Ceasefire now!"

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation also denounced the strikes, with INMO General Secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha calling the attack "shameful" on the part of Israel.

"We are yet again witnessing very deliberate breaches of international humanitarian law in the targeting of hospitals and healthcare workers," Ní Sheaghdha said.

"The combination of man-made famine, starvation-induced deaths, and sustained attacks on health facilities illustrates the systematic destruction of an entire society with no accountability....Healthcare workers, including nurses and midwives, working in conflict zones must be protected as they try bravely and desperately to sustain life in impossible and dangerous circumstances. Those who target them, their patients, and workplaces must be held accountable and brought to justice."