Cairo/Jerusalem: Israeli military killed Al Jazeera journalist Anas al-Sharif in a Gaza strike on Sunday, on accused of being a Hamas cell leader. But in actual he had been targeted for his frontline reporting on Gaza-Israel war.
Anas Al Sharif, 28, was among a group of four Al Jazeera journalists and an assistant who died in a strike on a tent near Shifa Hospital in eastern Gaza City, Gaza officials and Al Jazeera said. An official at the hospital said two other people were also killed in the strike.
Seven people were killed in the attack on the tent located outside the main gate of Gaza City’s al-Shifa Hospital late on Sunday evening. They include Al Jazeera correspondent Mohammed Qreiqeh and camera operators Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal and Moamen Aliwa.
Calling Al Sharif "one of Gaza's bravest journalists," Al Jazeera said the attack was a "desperate attempt to silence voices in anticipation of the occupation of Gaza."
Anas al-Sharif wrote on his X message that, Israel had launched intense, concentrated bombardment – also known as “fire belts” – on the eastern and southern parts of Gaza City.
In his last video, the loud booms of Israel’s intensive missile bombing can be heard in the background as the dark sky is lit in a flash of orange light.
قصف لا يتوقف… منذ ساعتين والعدوان الإسرائيلي يشتد على مدينة غزة. pic.twitter.com/yW8PesTkFT
— أنس الشريف Anas Al-Sharif (@AnasAlSharif0) August 10, 2025
Translation: Nonstop bombing… For the past two hours, the Israeli aggression on Gaza City has intensified.
Israeli military claimed that, Al Sharif was the head of a Hamas cell and "was responsible for advancing rocket attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF (Israeli) troops.
A press freedom group and a UN expert previously warned that Al Sharif's life was in danger due to his reporting from Gaza. UN Special Rapporteur Irene Khan said last month that Israel's claims against him were unsubstantiated.
Al Jazeera said Al Sharif had left a social media message to be posted in the event of his death that read, "...I never hesitated to convey the truth as it is, without distortion or misrepresentation, hoping that God would witness those who remained silent."
Last October, Israel's military had named Al Sharif as one of six Gaza journalists it alleged were members of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, citing documents it said showed lists of people who completed training courses and salaries.
“Al Jazeera categorically rejects the Israeli occupation forces’ portrayal of our journalists as terrorists and denounces their use of fabricated evidence,” the network said in a statement at the time.
In a statement, the Committee to Protect Journalists, which in July urged the international community to protect Al Sharif, said Israel had failed to provide any evidence to back up its allegations against him.
"Anas Al Sharif and his colleagues were among the last remaining voices in Gaza conveying the tragic reality to the world," Al Jazeera said.
The Hamas-run Gaza government media office said 237 journalists have been killed since the war started on October 7, 2023. The Committee to Protect Journalists said at least 186 journalists have been killed in the Gaza conflict.
