The IDF killed Anas Al-Sharif, a Hamas terrorist who also worked as an Al Jazeera correspondent inside the Gaza Strip, on Sunday, the military announced.
He was reportedly killed along with five other individuals, including a second reporter, Mohammed Qreiqeh, according to Al Jazeera. Three cameramen were killed as well, according to the Qatari site, named as Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa.
Al-Sharif was responsible for advancing rocket attacks and had served as a member of Hamas ever since 2013, the IDF said.
Documents shared by the IDF included personnel rosters, lists of terror training courses, phone directories, and salary documents for Al-Sharif.
“Prior to the strike, steps were taken to mitigate harm to civilians, including the use of precise munitions, aerial surveillance, and additional intelligence,” the statement also shared.
Staff reportedly killed near Shifa Hospital
According to the Qatari network, their staff were killed in the strike near the Shifa Hospital.
Al-Sharif posted on social media minutes before being targeted, with an X/Twitter post saying that "bombings had been going on for the last two hours."
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."
Al Sharif was previously part of a Reuters team that in 2024 won a Pulitzer Prize in the category of Breaking News Photography for coverage of the Israel-Hamas war.
Journalists' groups and Al Jazeera denounced the killings.
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," the agency informed.
The IDF didn't share details about the site of the strike, while it claimed that the documents shared were "proof of the integration of the Hamas terrorist within the Qatari Al Jazeera network."
The Hamas terror group said that the killing may signal the start of an Israeli offensive. "The assassination of journalists and the intimidation of those who remain paves the way for a major crime that the occupation is planning to commit in Gaza City," they said in a statement.
Early allegations of terrorism
Last October, the 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.
“Israel’s pattern of labeling journalists as militants without providing credible evidence raises serious questions about its intent and respect for press freedom,” said Sara Qudah, CPJ’s director for the Middle East and North Africa.
Al Sharif, whose X account showed more than 500,000 followers, posted on the platform minutes before his death that Israel had been intensely bombarding Gaza City for more than two hours.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the killing of Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza in an Israeli air strike, his spokesperson said on Monday.
“The secretary-general calls for an independent and impartial investigation into these latest killings,” said UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric. “At least 242 journalists have been killed in Gaza since the war began. Journalists and media workers must be respected, they must be protected, and they must be allowed to carry out their work freely, free from fear and free from harassment.”
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the EU condemns the killing of five Al Jazeera journalists, including Anas Al-Sharif.
"We take note of the Israeli allegation that the group was Hamas terrorists, but there is a need in these cases to provide clear evidence, in respect of the rule of law, to avoid targeting of journalists," she said in a statement on X/Twitter.
She also urged Israel to allow more trucks into Gaza and a better distribution of aid.