Israeli airstrike kills 2 Journalists in Gaza

An Israeli airstrike in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip led to the death of two journalists, identified as Mustafa Thuria and Hamza Wael Dahdouh.

Mustafa Thuria, a video stringer associated with AFP news agency, and Hamza Wael Dahdouh, a journalist working with Al Jazeera, lost their lives while traveling in a car, as reported by the health ministry in Gaza and medics on the ground.

Mustafa Thuria, in his 30s, had been contributing to Agence France-Presse (AFP) since 2019 and had collaborated with various other media networks, including AP, Reuters, Al Jazeera, and CNN. Hamza Wael Dahdouh, whose father Wael al-Dahdouh is the Gaza bureau chief for Al Jazeera, had recently suffered injuries in a separate strike.

His wife and two other children had tragically lost their lives during an earlier Israeli bombardment.

The Israeli army, in response to the incident, was approached for comment by AFP. The military’s reply sought the geographic “coordinates” of the strike, emphasizing the need for further information.

Hamza’s father, Wael al-Dahdouh, expressed his grief on Al Jazeera television, condemning the Israeli actions.

“Hamza was everything for me … while we are full of humanity, they (Israel) are full of murder and hatred,” he said, calling for an end to the violence.

The father was visibly emotional as he hugged his son’s lifeless body at a hospital, surrounded by fellow journalists and relatives.

The two journalists had been filming a strike on a house in Rafah earlier on the same day, and their car was hit while returning from the assignment.

As of December 31, the Committee to Protect Journalists reported that at least 77 journalists and media workers had lost their lives since the start of the war on October 7 between Israel and Hamas. Among the casualties, 70 were Palestinians, four were Israelis, and three were Lebanese.

In response to the tragic incident, the Hamas government media office issued a statement condemning what they referred to as a “heinous crime” committed by the Israeli occupation army. The statement alleged that such actions were aimed at intimidating and preventing media coverage.

Christophe Deloire, the secretary general of the media advocacy group Reporters Without Borders, expressed shock over the journalists’ deaths, stating, “We are all shocked” in a post on social media.

The international community continues to closely monitor the situation, with growing concerns about the safety of journalists covering the conflict in the region.