Last January, after a ceasefire was implemented in Gaza, Anas al-Sharif gradually removed his protective gear during a live television broadcast. An enthusiastic crowd was cheering for him. That day, there was hope that the ceasefire would mark the beginning of an end to the suffering of the 2 million people of Gaza.
But about seven months later, Anas al-Sharif, a journalist for Al Jazeera, and his four colleagues were killed in an Israeli attack on Gaza City.
Sharif was one of the most well-known Palestinian journalists in Gaza. Among the dozens killed by Israel during the war, Sharif’s death has drawn international condemnation.
There have been strong calls for accountability from Israel. Press organizations and human rights activists around the world have condemned the incident. The killing of this fearless journalist has left other journalists and media workers reporting on the war worried that they might face the same fate as Sharif.
28-year-old al-Sharif was little known before the war. However, after Israel blocked international media from entering Gaza, he became the primary means for millions of viewers to see the face of Gaza. From the start of the war, he had been reporting daily, live, about the struggles and humanitarian conditions.
His reports directly captured important moments of the conflict. The news he broadcast about the ceasefire, the release of Israeli hostages, and stories of starvation shocked the world.
Al Jazeera hired him in December 2023. He went viral after posting videos of Israeli attacks on his hometown, Jabalia, on social media.
At that time, he was a professional cameraman. Initially, he was hesitant to appear on screen. But at the urging of his colleagues, he began presenting reports — an experience he called “indescribable.”
“I had never even appeared on any local channel, let alone internationally,” he told Sotaur Media in February 2024. “The happiest person was my father.” Shortly after al-Sharif began reporting for Al Jazeera, his father was killed in an Israeli airstrike.
A father of two children, al-Sharif appeared on the channel almost every day since he started his job.
“We journalists slept in hospitals, on the streets, in cars, ambulances, camps, warehouses, and with displaced people. I slept in 30 to 40 different places,” he had said.
In January, during a live television broadcast, when he removed his protective gear, the crowd carried him on their shoulders.
“I am taking off this helmet that has made me tired, and this armor that has become like a part of my body,” he said live on air. After that, he paid tribute to his colleagues who were killed and injured in Israeli attacks in Gaza.
His reports caught the attention of the Israeli military. Israeli military intelligence warned him to stop reporting for Al Jazeera, he used to say.
“In the end, the Israeli military sent a voice message to my WhatsApp number. An intelligence officer said, ‘Leave your current location, go south, and stop reporting for Al Jazeera’… I was reporting live from a hospital. A few minutes later, the room I was sitting in was targeted in an attack,” he said.
Why was Sharif killed now?
Israel had accused al-Sharif of having ties with Hamas as early as 10 months ago. It is unclear why the decision was made to target him at this time.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), in a statement confirming his targeted killing, accused al-Sharif of leading a Hamas cell in Gaza that launched rocket attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF forces.
In October 2024, the Israeli military released some documents claiming proof of al-Sharif’s connection with Hamas. They also accused five other Al Jazeera journalists of being members of Hamas.
In a video published on X, a military spokesperson said that al-Sharif joined a Hamas battalion in 2013 and was injured during training in 2017. These claims were denied by al-Sharif himself and by Irene Khan, the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression.
“I reiterate, I, Anas al-Sharif, am not affiliated with any political group. My only purpose is to present the truth as it is, without prejudice,” he wrote last month. “There is a deadly situation in Gaza; speaking the truth has become a danger.”
After al-Sharif’s death, the IDF’s Arabic spokesperson released photos of him alongside Yahya Sinwar. Sinwar is considered the mastermind of the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel. Israel announced in October 2024 that Sinwar had been killed.
Last Sunday, al-Sharif was at the journalists’ tent near the entrance of Al-Shifa Hospital. The hospital director, Dr. Mohammad Abu Salmiya, informed CNN that al-Sharif was killed in an Israeli attack there.
According to Salmiya, the tent bore a “Press” sign. The attack killed at least seven people.
According to Al Jazeera, correspondent Mohammad Keraikeh, photojournalists Ibrahim al-Taher and Moamen Aliwa, as well as staff member Mohammad Nawfal, were also killed in the attack.
Accusations Against Journalists
After al-Sharif’s killing, rights groups and advocates for freedom and human rights strongly criticized the incident. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) stated, “We are stunned. Israel has a long-standing practice of accusing journalists of being terrorists without evidence.”
According to CPJ, since the war began, 192 journalists have been killed. Of these, 184 are Palestinians who were killed in Israeli actions.
Since the start of the war, Israel has not allowed any international journalists to enter Gaza freely.
Al-Sharif’s body was cremated on Monday outside the Shifa Hospital compound in Gaza City in the presence of a large crowd.
Only a few hours before al-Sharif and his colleagues were killed, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that foreign journalists would be allowed to enter Gaza. However, he said permission would be granted only with the approval and involvement of the Israeli military.
Having sensed his own death in life, al-Sharif had previously written about himself. In a letter published by his colleagues after his death, he wrote: “I have felt all the pain, suffered loss and hardship many times, but I never retreated from speaking the truth. If I die, I will die standing firm on my principles. Do not forget Gaza. And remember me in your prayers.”
