The Overseas Press Club of Cambodia and the professional membership of the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand condemns the killing of Al Jazeera reporter Anas al-Sharif and four of his colleagues on 11 August by what Israel itself has described as a ‘targeted strike’.
Anas al-Sharif, who was 28 years-old, was the best-known of the handful of journalists still working in Gaza. Israel has described him as part of a Hamas terrorist cell, but has not provided any clear evidence to back this claim. Al Jazeera has meanwhile accused Israel of fabricating allegations to justify attacking journalists.
Whatever the Israeli authorities may believe about Anas al-Sharif, nothing can justify the deliberate killing of an unarmed journalist. The US-based Committee to Protect Journalists has documented the killing of over 190 Palestinian journalists in Gaza by Israel since 7 October 2023. This is by far the greatest death toll among media workers the organisation has recorded in any conflict.
Israel has banned foreign journalists from Gaza, which makes this toll even more disproportionate given the small number of journalists left there. It is an unprecedented record that reflects a shocking disregard for human life and for the proper role of the media.
The killings of Anas al-Sharif and his crew Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, Moamen Aliwa, and Mohammed Noufal also come as Israel has announced its intention to take over Gaza City, where coverage of the planned operation will be even more severely curtailed.
OPCC and FCCT statements almost always relate to the media, press freedom and free speech, usually in Southeast Asia. We have in the past debated whether we should say anything about the conflict in the Middle East, which is beyond our usual remit.
Another issue has been whether the targeting of journalists can be singled out when others are being affected in such great numbers. Some 1,400 health care workers have died in Gaza since Hamas attacked Israel 19 months ago. A recent study by The Lancet in the UK estimated nearly 65,000 dead of whom 60 per cent were women, children and the elderly.
That said, we believe the scale of Israel’s onslaught against the media in Gaza requires all organisations concerned with the welfare of journalists to speak out.
OPCC stands with our FCCT peers in condemning the killings of Anas al-Sharif and his colleagues. We also believe, in light of the recent Cambodia-Thailand conflict, it is paramount to coalesce and speak out.
Photo: Over 190 Palestinian journalists have been killed in Gaza by the Israeli Defense Forces since October 2023. (Reuters)
