Cameraman Ahmed Wishah killed in Gaza strike
Al Jazeera said its Mubasher cameraman was killed in an Israeli strike on a house in central Gaza’s Bureij refugee camp.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
2 min read
Ahmed Wishah, a cameraman for Al Jazeera Mubasher, was killed in an Israeli air strike on a house in central Gaza, Al Jazeera said Saturday. His death adds to the toll on Palestinian journalists during Israel’s war in Gaza, which press freedom groups say has killed scores of media workers.
Al Jazeera said the strike hit a home in the Bureij refugee camp. The network said in a statement that it “strongly condemns” what it called the targeting and killing of Wishah.
Al Jazeera described Wishah as a correspondent for Al Jazeera Mubasher in its statement. The network said the killing was a “flagrant violation” of international laws and norms and accused Israel of pursuing what it called a policy of targeting journalists and suppressing reporting.
There was no Israeli military comment on Wishah’s death included in Al Jazeera’s report. Al Jazeera reported that at least 10 people were killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza on Saturday.
Brother killed earlier this year
Wishah’s brother, Mohammed Wishah, was killed on April 8 while traveling in his vehicle, according to Palestinian civil defence authorities cited by Al Jazeera. Those authorities said Israeli shelling killed him.
The Israeli military said the next day that it had killed Mohammed Wishah because he was a “key terrorist in Hamas’ rocket and weapons production headquarters,” according to Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera reported that the military did not provide evidence for that claim.
The Committee to Protect Journalists says at least 260 Palestinian journalists have been killed since Israel’s war in Gaza began in October 2023, according to figures cited by Al Jazeera. The organization tracks attacks on journalists and press freedom violations worldwide.
War toll
Gaza’s health ministry said Saturday that 73,018 people have been killed and 173,273 wounded since the war began, according to Al Jazeera. The ministry’s figures do not distinguish between civilians and combatants in the totals cited by the network.
The health ministry also said Israeli attacks have killed 1,007 people and injured 3,165 others since a ceasefire was announced in October, according to Al Jazeera. The report did not provide further details on the ceasefire period referenced by the ministry.
Al Jazeera’s statement framed Wishah’s killing as part of a broader pattern of danger faced by journalists in Gaza. Press freedom advocates, including the Committee to Protect Journalists, have repeatedly reported high journalist casualty figures during the war.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.