Palestine: Al Jazeera cameraperson killed, correspondent injured, another assaulted by Israeli forces

Al Jazeera Arabic journalist Samer Abudaqa was killed in an Israeli strike in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis after “bleeding for five hours” on Friday as ambulances were prevented from reaching him, said the Qatar-based media network. 

Cameraman Abudaqa and correspondent Wael Dahdouh were reporting at a school when they were hit by the bombardment. 

While Abudaqa lost his life, Dahdouh, Al Jazeera’s Gaza bureau chief, suffered injuries. He was hit by shrapnel and reportedly walked to Nasser hospital alone, where he was treated. Dadouh’s wife, son, daughter and grandson had been killed in an Israeli airstrike in October.

However, Abudaqa couldn’t be reached by the rescuers on time.

Al Jazeera condemned the attack, calling it “systematic targeting”.  The news network pointed out that “Israeli drones” had fired missiles at a school housing civilians. 

The news came on the day Palestinian photojournalist Mustafa Alkharouf was brutally assaulted by Israeli soldiers in East Jerusalem. The assault of the Anadolu Agency journalist was captured on-air by a CNN reporter. 

At the time of the attack, Alkharouf was reporting on Palestinians gathering for Friday prayers near the Al-Aqsa Mosque. He has now been hospitalised. 

Videos showed heated exchanges between Alkharouf and the Israeli soldiers, after which two Israeli soldiers pulled their gun at Alkharouf’s face, and subsequently, pinned him on the ground, kicking his face. 

After the video went viral, Israel said it had suspended the two police officers.    

Anadolu Agency said that the Israeli police also attacked its cameraman Faiz Abu Ramila, who was with Alkharouf.

Earlier, a Reuters probe had alleged that Israeli tank fire had targeted clearly identified journalists in Lebanon, killing its journalist Issam Abdallah and injuring six other reporters.

Meanwhile, a recent video published by a rights group showed Israeli forces killing two Palestinians civilians “who did not appear to pose a threat” in the West Bank. The subsequent online outrage ostensibly prompted the Israeli authorities to open a military police investigation in the matter. 

The Israeli troops also said that they “mistakenly” killed three Israeli hostages in Gaza, purportedly perceiving them as threats. The three were among the estimated 240 Israelis taken hostage by Hamas in Gaza.       

So far, over 19,000 people have been killed in Gaza, as per media body Committee to Protect Journalists. At least 64 journalists have also been killed, of which 57 were Palestinian, four Israeli and three Lebanese. 

Many of the journalists killed in the conflict were at work, trying to make audiences across the world aware of the horrors of war. From a mother of three to a reporter known for their “empathy”, these journalists also lived a life off the camera. Read all about it here.