Palestinian journalist Wael al-Dahdouh (center), praying at the funeral of his son Hamza, killed in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Jan. 7, 2024. (Credit: AFP)
The Gaza bureau chief of Qatar's al-Jazeera, Wael al-Dahdouh, lost his mother on Sunday, who died of an illness in a hospital in the Palestinian enclave, according to several Arabic-language media.
Having become the embodiment of Palestinian journalists covering the war in Gaza, Dahdouh, 53, lost several relatives and was himself wounded during the Hamas-Israel war. He left the Palestinian territory in mid-January and is currently in Doha undergoing surgery on a hand injured in a bombardment. Four of his children are also in Qatar.
The journalist had lost his wife, two of his children and a grandson in a strike on the Nousseirat refugee camp at the end of October. On Jan. 7, an Israeli strike killed his son Hamza al-Dahdouh, who also worked for al-Jazeera. The following day, two other members of his family, Mohammed and Ahmad al-Dahdouh, were also killed.
Journalists have paid a heavy price since Oct. 7, 2023. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 83 have been killed covering the conflict, including three in Lebanon. Other parties have reported an even higher number of journalists killed.
As the war enters its fifth month on Wednesday, the death toll in the Gaza Strip on Sunday evening stood at 27,365, the vast majority of them civilians, according to the Gazan Ministry of Health.
This article originally appeared in French in L'Orient-Le Jour.