According to the United Nations, the number of Palestinian journalists killed by Israel since the start of the Gaza war stood at 242 by 11 August 2025. On the other hand, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reported that 192 journalists, at least 184 of them Palestinian, had been killed by Israel as of 10 August 2025. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) reported the killing of at least 180 Palestinian journalists and media workers by Israel as of 11 August 2025. A July 2024 count by the Gaza Government Media Office placed the number of Palestinian journalists killed by Israel at 160. By January 2025, Israel had reportedly killed 42 more Palestinian journalists to raise this number to 202, and by July 2025, it had reportedly killed 15 more journalists to raise the number to 217. An aggregation of data from multiple sources, including from the CPJ and the IFJ, which listed the names of all journalists hitherto reported to have been killed by Israel concluded that, by 11 August 2025, Israel had killed up to 274 journalists, with 269 of them Palestinian. Subsequently the Committee to Protect Journalists revised the count and removed 22 individuals who had engaged in combat from the list.
The head of the Committee to Protect Journalists stated in 2024, "Israel's war on Gaza is more deadly to journalists than any previous war". Israeli airstrikes additionally damaged or destroyed an estimated 48 media facilities in Gaza. Reporters Without Borders has reported that the Israeli army intentionally targeted Palestinian journalists. The Guardian stated that contrary to international law, Israel had targeted Hamas-affiliated Palestinian journalists despite their non-involvement in combat, thus disputing Israel's denial of targeting journalists. In 2023, nearly 75% of journalists killed worldwide were Palestinians who had died in Israel’s war in Gaza. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, Israel was the second worst country in the world for allowing the murderers of journalists to go unpunished. In December 2025, Reporters Without Borders declared Israel as the biggest killer and "the worst enemy" of journalists of 2025, with nearly half of all journalists who were killed of that year, were murdered by the IDF.
UNESCO awarded its 2024 World Press Freedom Prize to the Palestinian journalists of Gaza.
Killing of journalists by Israeli forces
After the October 7 attacks, a journalist named Omar Abu Shawish was killed in Gaza.
The Hajji Tower airstrike destroyed an apartment block housing journalists' offices on 10 October 2023, killing at least three journalists along with civilians. Salam Khalil, the head of the Gaza Journalists Syndicate's Committee of Women Journalists, was buried under the rubble of her home together with her family in an Israeli strike on the same day and presumed dead. She was subsequently found to be alive with her children.
Turkish public broadcaster TRT World released footage on 17 November 2023 showing the Israeli police attacking their news crew, leading the Turkish minister of communications Fahrettin Altun to say, "This ugly attack has added a new embarrassment to Israel's record on press freedom." On 19 November, six media professionals were killed by Israeli forces in just 24 hours. On 3 December, the Committee to Protect Journalists stated 54 Palestinian journalists had been killed in the war thus far. On 14 December, the United Nations released a statement that said, "Gaza has seemingly become the deadliest place for journalists – and their families – in the world." Following an Israeli attack on a journalists' tent at the Al-Aqsa Hospital on 31 March 2024, Al Jazeera English stated, "Journalists have been systematically targeted throughout this conflict."
Journalist Fadi al-Wahidi was shot in the neck in October 2024 by Israeli forces and fell into a coma while awaiting approval for a medical evacuation.
Two journalists from the Palestine Today News Agency were killed on 8 April 2025 and one later died of his wounds after an Israeli strike on a press tent near Nasser Medical Complex.
Palestinian photojournalist Fatima Hassouna was killed on 16 April 2025 along with ten members of her family in an Israeli airstrike on their home in Gaza City. She became the subject of the documentary film Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk, selected for the ACID film programme shown during the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. The attack occurred one day after her documentary's selection for Cannes was announced.
Assassinations of journalists by the IDF
"Language makes genocide justifiable. A reason why we are still being bombed after 243 days is because of The New York Times and most Western media."
— Hossam Shabat, a Palestinian journalist accused by Israel of being a member of Hamas and killed in an airstrike 24 March 2025
The Israeli army has, by its own admission, deliberately assassinated journalists during the Gaza war, including Ismail al-Ghoul, Ramil al Refee, Hamza Dahdouh, Hossam Shabat, and Hassan Aslih. During the conflict, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) claimed that the Israeli army had deliberately targeted journalists.
The intentional targeting of journalists is a war crime. The killing of journalists by Israeli forces in Gaza had been a recurring issue, with previous incidents in 2018 and 2021. Earlier in 2023, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) released a report stating that 20 journalists had been killed by Israeli military fire since 2001, for which "to date, no one has been held accountable".
– Hossam Shabat, a Palestinian journalist accused by Israel being a member of Hamas and killed in an Israeli airstrike 24 March 2025 An investigation by The Guardian in June 2024 disputed Israel's denial of targeting media personnel, citing that some in the Israeli military have viewed journalists Hamas or its affiliates media as legitimate targets. At least 23 journalists who worked for the Al-Aqsa media network had been killed by the Israeli military in the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023, according to ARIJ, a Jordanian media non-profit. An Israeli military spokesperson confirmed that Israel does not differentiate between media workers and militants working for Hamas, a statement which the Guardian said had raised alarm among legal experts, as under the laws of war journalists are protected unless they participate in combat operations. The UN’s special rapporteur on the protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Irene Khan, stated that Israel had "spread disinformation about journalists being linked to militants" and that it failed to prove such claims. ARIJ surveyed 200 Gaza-based journalists, who almost all had been displaced, and reported that their homes had been bombed while sleeping with their families.
Ismail Abu Omar
According to Israel, Ismail Abu Omar, a journalist with Al Jazeera, was a deputy company commander in a Hamas battalion and participated in the 7 October attacks; during the attacks he shared a video in which he can be heard saying "The brothers advanced, 'Masha'Allah' may God bless". Abu Omar, along with camera man Ahmad Matar, was wounded in a drone strike on 13 February; Al Jazeera denied and condemned the Israeli accusations, stating "Al Jazeera Media Network rejects the Israeli occupation forces’ attempt to justify the killing and targeting of journalists. The Network condemns the accusations against its journalists and recalls Israel's long record of lies and fabrication of evidence through which it seeks to hide its heinous crimes."
Mohammed Washah and Amal El Shamali
During operations in Northern Gaza, Israel alleged that they recovered documents revealing that Mohammed Washah, a journalist with Al Jazeera, was a commander in Hamas' anti-tank unit, and did research and development for their air unit. According to The Times of Israel, Israel released images that appeared to show Washah training with anti-tank weaponry, as well as working with others weapons and drones. Reporters Without Borders noted that Washah is the second journalist killed by the Israeli army since the start of the ceasefire, following Amal El Shamali, killed by a drone on 9 March 2026.
Anas Al-Sharif
On 10 August 2025, Anas Al-Sharif, a Palestinian journalist working for Al Jazeera, was assassinated in an Israeli airstrike on a media tent outside Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. The strike also killed four other journalists – Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa – along with two others, including Al-Sharif's nephew.
The attack was widely condemned by Al Jazeera, press freedom organizations, and Palestinian authorities as a deliberate assault on journalists, while the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed Al-Sharif was a Hamas operative – an allegation rejected by Al Jazeera and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). The assassination occurred amidst the ongoing Gaza war and was described as part of a broader pattern of violence against journalists in Gaza.
Hajji Tower airstrike
Israeli aircraft bombed a residential building called Hajji Tower in the Gaza Strip on 10 October 2023. According to the Palestinian Press Union, four journalists covering the evacuation of a nearby building were killed, and an unknown number of people were injured. Journalists were present after a resident in a nearby building had reported receiving a phone call from the Israeli military warning of an imminent strike, and the building was being evacuated. The strike hit another building closer to the journalists. Hisham al-Nawajha sustained severe injuries and later died at Al-Shifa Medical Complex.
August 2025 Nasser Hospital strikes
On 25 August 2025, an Israeli double tap strike hit Nasser Hospital, killing at least 20 people, including medics and five journalists. Most of the deaths were caused by the second strike. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said that Israel "deeply regrets" the strike.
Killing of journalists' families
In addition to journalists killed while reporting, Palestinian journalists and media organizations have reported extensive casualties among journalists' family members. According to the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate, more than 700 relatives of Palestinian journalists have been killed in Gaza during the war. The syndicate stated that the figure reflects cumulative family losses over time and highlights the broader humanitarian impact of the conflict on journalists and their families.
Earlier in the conflict, the syndicate stated on 4 February 2024 that at least 70 journalists had lost close family members, indicating that multiple journalists were affected, in some cases involving more than one relative.
Nine family members of CNN producer Ibrahim Dahman were killed in an Israeli airstrike in northern Gaza on 4 December. On 11 December, an airstrike on the home of journalist Anas Al-Sharif resulted in the death of his father. On 8 January 2024, the mother of Al Arabiya journalist Ahmad al-Batta, and the wife and children of journalist Sameer Radi, were killed in airstrikes. On 28 February, a Palestinian journalist stated that an Israeli bombing had killed his pregnant wife, three-year-old son, and 20 other people. Hussein Jaber, an UNRWA photographer, stated that his five-year-old daughter was killed while his family was evacuating Gaza City in December 2023, stating, "Heavy gunfire broke out, and I saw how Salma was hit in the neck in front of my eyes".
Killing of Wael Dahdouh's family
Several members of the family of Al Jazeera Arabic's Gaza bureau chief Wael Dahdouh were killed in an Israeli airstrike on 25 October in the Nuseirat refugee camp, south of Wadi Gaza, where they had been sheltering after following the Israeli order for Palestinian civilians to move south from northern Gaza. Al Jazeera condemned the killings, calling it an "indiscriminate attack". Dahdouh, speaking to Al Jazeera, said "There is no safe place in Gaza at all". The Israeli army confirmed it had conducted an airstrike in the area near where Dahdouh's family had been sheltering, saying they were targeting "Hamas terrorist infrastructure". Dahdouh himself was later injured in an Israeli missile strike in Khan Younis while covering the Haifa School airstrike.
Dahdouh's son Hamza al-Dahdouh, also a journalist, was killed with a colleague by an Israeli airstrike on their vehicle in Khan Younis on 7 January 2024. Reporters Without Borders stated it appeared a single rocket had fallen on Dahdouh's car. The IDF said that the pair were traveling with a "terror operative" who was operating a drone and that they "identified and struck a terrorist who operated an aircraft in a way that put IDF forces at risk". According to the Washington Post, the IDF changed their statement the following day, when IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that their use of a drone to film made them appear to be terrorists. After a March 2024 investigation, The Washington Post concluded that there were "no indications" that Dahdouh had been "operating as anything other than a journalist that day" because experts said there was no evidence of any "military deployments or militant activity" in the vicinity of the rubble that eleven journalists had traveled from Rafah to report on after an Israeli airstrike earlier in the day. In a statement, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated he was "deeply sorry" for the "unimaginable loss". Wael Dahdouh stated, "Hamza was not part of me. He was all of me."
Membership in Hamas and other groups
Israel has claimed on multiple occasions that the journalists it has killed were affiliated with militant groups. The Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center said that about 60 percent of the journalists killed in Gaza between the start of the Gaza war and February 18, 2024 had such affiliations. Two of those killed in this period had been mourned by friends as members of the "resistance" and "jihad fighters" and a third had been part of Hamas' political leadership.
The Al Jazeera Media Network rejected Israel's "unfounded allegations" against its journalists. Reporters Without Borders found inconsistencies with Israel's allegations and stated, "Journalists are not terrorists and the mere publication of these documents doesn’t constitute proof of their affiliation nor does it give Israel the license to kill."