Al Jazeera cameraman Ahmed Wishah killed in Israeli strike on Gaza

Qatar-based news network Al Jazeera has said one of its journalists was killed by an Israeli strike in Gaza on Saturday, becoming one of the at least 260 Palestinian journalists to have been killed since Israel’s war on Gaza began in October 2023.

Ahmed Wishah, a cameraman for the network, was killed in a strike targeting a house in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, the broadcaster said on its website.

Al Jazeera said it “strongly condemns the heinous crime”, adding: “This constitutes a new and flagrant violation of all international laws and norms, and reflects a continued systematic policy of targeting journalists and silencing the voice of truth.”

Ahmed’s brother Mohammed was killed on 8 April this year by Israeli shelling when he was travelling in his vehicle, Palestinian civil defence authorities said at the time.

Following Ahmed’s death, the Israeli military said it had carried out the strike but said Wishah was a “Hamas terrorist”.

“The IDF (Israel Defense Forces) confirms it carried out a strike on Ahmed Wishah, who was a Hamas terrorist,” a military spokesperson told AFP.

The spokesperson did not immediately provide evidence to support the military’s claim about Wishah, but said “there will be a statement issued with further details”.

At least 260 journalists have been killed since Israel’s war on Gaza began in October 2023, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.