Conflict of verbal exchanges
Palestinian Journalist Anas Al-Sharif Assassinated in Israeli Airstrike
In a tragic turn of events, Palestinian journalist Anas Al-Sharif was killed in an Israeli airstrike on August 10, 2025, outside Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza. The incident marked a grim addition to a series of journalist deaths in the region since 2023.
The Israeli army's press office responded to inquiries about Al-Sharif's alleged affiliation with Hamas by sending uncommented Excel spreadsheets and documents. However, these materials were questioned by Abu Bakr, who expressed concern about their validity as evidence.
Al-Sharif himself believed the accusations were not just a campaign to destroy his reputation but a direct threat to his life. Many of his colleagues shared this belief, attributing the smear campaign to his work in Gaza.
The journalists were in a tent at the entrance of the Al-Shifa hospital when they were struck by a rocket fired by a drone. This incident followed a timeline of heavy losses among Gaza journalists from 2023 through 2025, including the deaths of several journalists in various Israeli strikes.
Notable events include the Israeli airstrike on Hajji Tower in October 2023, which killed four journalists covering evacuation efforts nearby. In December 2023, an airstrike on Al-Sharif’s home killed his father, and numerous journalists lost close family members in Israeli airstrikes throughout early 2024.
From May to July 2025, multiple journalists, including Ahmed Al-Helou, Aziz al-Hajjar, Ismail Abu Hatab, Ahmad Salama Abu Aisha, Hussam Al-Adlouni, Fadi Khalifa, Tamer Al-Zaanin, and Walaa Al-Jabari, were killed in various Israeli strikes.
The United Nations condemned the attack on the unarmed journalists as a blatant violation of international law. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) criticized the repeated accusations by Israeli army spokesman Avihai Adraei that Al-Sharif was a "Hamas terrorist." Sara Qudah, the CPJ director, expressed concern about the threats against Al-Sharif and called on the international community to protect him.
Al-Sharif had been reporting directly from conflict zones and areas hit by bombs since the Israeli army's invasion. One of the main themes of his work was "Don't let anyone silence you, don't let any border stop you. Be a bridge for the liberation of the country."
The Israeli army confirmed Al-Sharif's murder on Monday, which could potentially lead to investigations into war crimes. Abu Bakr, the Director of the Palestinian Journalists' Union, stated that most of the 242 journalists killed by the Israeli army since October 7, 2023, were accused of cooperating with or sympathizing with Hamas.
The use of photos showing journalists and Hamas officials at public events as evidence against journalists, as expressed by Abu Bakr, raises important legal and moral questions about the targeting of journalists: whether Al-Sharif was a legitimate journalist or a combatant, which impacts journalistic credibility and the treatment of reporters in conflict zones.
- The incident of Anas Al-Sharif's assassination in the Israeli airstrike is a matter of concern and dispute, with the Israeli army's press office providing evidence implying his affiliation with Hamas, but questions have been raised about the validity and accuracy of these materials.
- In the realm of general news and crime-and-justice reporting, the targeting of journalists like Al-Sharif raises significant questions about war-and-conflicts politics, as images of journalists associating with Hamas officials at public events are used as evidence, blurring the lines between legitimate reporting and combatant status, affecting journalistic credibility and treatment of reporters in conflict zones.
