Israeli strike in Gaza kills 11, including three Palestinian journalists

Israeli forces killed at least 11 people in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, Gaza health officials said, and the Israeli military said the dead included three Palestinian journalists who it said were operating a drone. The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate identified the three as Abdel Raouf Shaath, Mohammad Salah Qishta and Anas Ghneim and said they were documenting "the suffering of civilians in displacement camps." The union said the journalists were in a car in the central town of Al-Zahra when they were targeted.

Mr. Shaath had freelanced for Agence France-Presse, and the Egyptian Relief Committee said Mr. Qishta had been documenting its relief efforts; the committee last week began housing residents in a shelter in Al-Zahra as part of a plan to support displaced people. Gaza’s airspace is under the complete control of the Israeli military, which the report said closely tracks even commercial drones.

The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that as of early January at least 206 journalists and media workers had been killed in Gaza since the start of the war. The report noted that Israel has barred foreign journalists throughout the war and continues to do so three months into its cease-fire with Hamas, and that international law says journalists conducting independent reporting cannot be treated as military targets.

Key Topics

World, Israeli Military, Gaza Strip, Abdel Raouf Shaath, Mohammad Salah Qishta, Anas Ghneim