A person holds a photo of Anas al-Sharif on August 11, 2025, in Doha, Qatar, during a gathering at the Al Jazeera offices in tribute to the journalist and five of his colleagues killed in Gaza the previous day in an Israeli airstrike. Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters
Israel killed six journalists on Sunday in an airstrike that directly targeted a media tent just outside Gaza City's al-Shifa Hospital. Five of the journalists worked for Al Jazeera and a sixth, a freelancer, succumbed to his injuries Monday morning. Israel took responsibility for the assassinations, calling the journalists "jihadists."
The victims were 28-year-old Anas al-Sharif, who was one of the most well-known correspondents reporting from Gaza, correspondent Mohammad Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, cameramen Mohammad Noufal and Moamen Aliwa, and freelance photojournalist Mohammed al-Khaldi.
Their names have now been added to a list of nearly 200 journalists, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF), killed by Israel is its military offensive against Gaza.
In May 2024, Israel banned Al Jazeera from broadcasting in the country and shut its offices. Since the war began, Israel has banned international journalists from entering Gaza. All of the reporting comes from local journalists and correspondents, who work under constant bombardment and are direct targets of the Israeli army.
With famine spreading due to Israel's blockade and Israeli attacks continuing, the death toll among journalists in Gaza since Oct. 7 continues to rise.
Between 180 and 238 journalists killed in Gaza
More than 200, according to RSF: "The number of journalists killed in conflict zones [worldwide] is the highest in the past five years. In Gaza, the scale of the tragedy defies understanding," RSF announced in 2024. For 2025, the NGO reported over 200 journalists killed in Gaza, including five in 2025 as of June 30, not counting the six journalists killed on Sunday.
At least 180, according to the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ): "At least 180 Palestinian journalists and media workers have been killed, several have been wounded, and others are missing during the war in Gaza," warned the IFJ in a statement published Monday. In its latest report, the organization lists five of the six journalists killed on Sunday.
186, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ): "Since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023, 186 journalists have been killed. At least 178 of them are Palestinians killed by Israel," CPJ noted in a statement responding to the Israeli strike on the Al-Jazeera journalists’ tent. According to this organization’s count, 23 journalists have been killed in 2025 in the occupied Palestinian territories, as of June 30, not counting the six victims of Aug. 10, bringing CPJ’s toll to 29 killed since the start of the year.
230, according to the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS): In the PJS Committee on Liberties’ semi-annual report released July 20, 2025, the union reported 33 journalists killed in 2025 in the enclave, bringing its total to 230 deaths, rising to 236 with the journalists killed in Sunday’s strike.
232, according to Al Jazeera: Not counting the six latest victims, Al Jazeera's last tally as of April 1, 2025, puts the death toll at 232 journalists killed since the start of the war, 10 more than the previous Al-Jazeera investigation from Dec. 31, 2024. As of this morning, the total stands at 238.
238, according to the Gaza government media office: It reports 238 journalists killed in the enclave since Oct. 7.
242, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): At least 242 Palestinian journalists have been killed in Gaza since Oct. 7. "We condemn the killing by Israeli military of 6 Palestinian journalists by targeting their tent, in grave breach of international humanitarian law. Israel must respect & protect all civilians, including journalists," the OHCHR said in a social media post on Monday, also calling for immediate, safe and unhindered access to Gaza for all media workers.
'Baseless' accusations against the targeted journalists
On July 29, the IFJ published a statement calling on Israel to "stop threatening journalists covering the news in Gaza" and urged for strengthened measures by "international bodies to protect them."
The statement was in response to accusations on July 24 by Israeli army Arabic-language spokesperson Avichay Adraee against Sharif, alleging that the journalist was "a member of Hamas’s military wing."
In 2023, Israeli soldiers had already threatened Sharif directly, ordering him to "stop reporting" and "move to the south of the occupied Strip." The accusations against the slain journalist were described as "unfounded" by U.N. Special Rapporteur Irene Khan on July 31.
This is not the first time Israel has justified attacks on journalists by claiming to "target Hamas terrorists," without providing credible evidence.
The PJS reported 49 journalists detained and 480 wounded, in addition to those killed in the enclave. The Israeli offensive in Gaza has already killed 61,430, mostly civilians, according to data from Gaza's Health Ministry, which the U.N. regards as reliable.
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