Al Jazeera’s Mohammed Salama Among 3 Other Journalists Killed in Israeli Strikes on Nasser Hospital

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza – Israeli strikes on Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis on Monday killed at least 19 people, including four journalists, according to Palestinian health officials. Dozens more were wounded in what witnesses described as two consecutive strikes that hit the hospital compound.

Journalists Among the Dead

The victims include Husam al-Masri, a Reuters cameraman; Mohammed Salama, a photojournalist with Al Jazeera; Mariam Abu Daqa, a freelance contributor to the Associated Press and The Independent Arabic; and Moaz Abu Taha, a photographer for NBC.

Reuters reported that al-Masri was killed during a live video feed from the hospital, with footage showing the broadcast cutting off at the moment of the blast. Another Reuters photographer, Hatem Khaled, was injured in a second strike as rescuers, journalists, and bystanders attempted to aid the wounded.

The Associated Press confirmed the death of Abu Daqa, describing her as a 33-year-old freelancer who had been covering the conflict for the agency. Al Jazeera said Salama’s death brings the number of its staff and freelancers killed in Gaza to seven since the war began.

Chaos at the Hospital

Eyewitnesses described panic following the first explosion, with people running as smoke billowed from an upper floor. Ambulance sirens filled the air as rescue workers tried to reach the injured. A second strike hit before the evacuation could be completed, killing more people, including a rescue worker.

Gaza’s Civil Defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said an explosive drone struck a building inside the hospital, followed by an airstrike while patients and staff were being moved.

Rising Toll of Journalists

The Palestinian Journalist Syndicate reported that more than 240 journalists and media workers have been killed in Gaza since the conflict began on October 7, 2023. Monday’s strike is one of the deadliest single incidents involving reporters since the war erupted.

The Israeli military and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office have not issued an immediate comment on the attack.

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