The United Nations Human Rights Office condemned a targeted Israeli attack, killing six journalists in Gaza, calling it a “serious violation of” the international human law.
Five al-Jazira journalist, including prominent correspondent Anas al-Sharif, was killed in an Israeli air strike on Sunday night with a sixth freelance journalist.
The Israeli army stated that it had targeted Sharif, alleging that it “served as the head of a terrorist cell in Hamas”.
Media rights groups and countries including Qatar have condemned the attack. A spokesman for the Prime Minister Sir Kir Stmper said that the UK government is “seriously worried” and called for an independent investigation.
Speaking to reporters, the official spokesperson of Starmer said that Israel should ensure that journalists could work safely and report without any fear.
The funeral of Sharif, partner Al Jazeera correspondent Mohammad Kreikeh and Cameraman Ibrahim Zahar, Mohammad Nufal and Momene Aliva took place on Monday after a target missile strike on their tent in Gaza city.
Mohammad al-Khaldi was named as the sixth journalist by Medix at Al-Shifa Hospital, who was killed during the strike, the Reuters News Agency. Another person was also killed in the attack, said this.
Without a media freedom group, reporters strongly condemned what he said to kill Sharif.
The Foreign Press Association said it was angry with the targeted murder. It said that the Israeli army had repeatedly labeled Palestinian journalists “as terrorists, often without verified evidence.
Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said it was impressed by the attack and Israel had failed to provide evidence to support his allegations against him.
The organization said, “Israel has a long, documented pattern of being accused of being a terrorist without providing any reliable evidence on journalists.”
The Israeli army has suggested that it has documents found in Gaza that confirm that Sharif belonged to Hamas.
It states that these include “Personnel Roster, List of Terrorist Training Courses, Phone Directory and Salary Documents”.
The only materials released for publication are screenshots of the spreadsheet that clearly lishes Hamas’s henchmen from the Northern Gaza Strip, keeping in mind a part of a part of a phone directory for the injuries of Hamas and the East Jabia Battalion of the Armed Group.
The BBC cannot independently verify these documents.
The BBC understands that Sharif worked for a Hamas media team in Gaza before the current struggle.
Israel says he was “Head of Hamas Terrorist Cell”, but he has given very little evidence to support it.
In some of his social media posts before his death, the journalist can be heard criticizing Hamas.
No Israeli clarification has been given so far for the killing of the entire Al Jazira News Crew.
CPJ says that at least 186 journalists have been killed since the onset of Israel’s military aggressive in October 2023 – the deadliest period for journalists as it began to record such data in 1992.
The United Nations Human Rights Office said in a post on X, “Israel should respect and protect all citizens including journalists.
Last month, BBC and three other news agencies – Reuters, AP and AFP – released Express a joint detail “Desperate anxiety” for journalists in the strip, who say they are unable to feed themselves and their families.
The Israeli government does not allow international news organizations including BBC to report independently in Gaza, so many outlets rely on Gaza-based reporters for coverage.
Meanwhile, in Gaza, according to the Hamas-Interested Health Ministry, five more people have been killed in the last 24 hours due to malnutrition.
The Ministry of Health said that this causes the total malnutrition death to 222, which includes 101 children.
The United Nations Humanitarian Agency said on Friday that the amount of assistance entering Gaza is “the minimum to meet the immense needs of the people”. Last month, United Nations -backed global food security experts warned that “the worst situation of famine is currently playing”.
Israel has continued to deny starving in Gaza and accused the United Nations agencies of not taking help on borders and distributing it.
The United Nations human agency has stated that it continues to look at obstacles and delays as it tries to collect assistance from the Israel-controlled border areas.
Israel launched its aggressive launch on 7 October 2023 in response to the Hamas -led attack on Southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and 251 others were held hostage.
Since then, according to the Ministry of Health, 61,430 people have been killed in Gaza as a result of Israel’s military campaign.
