By
At least 20 people, among them five journalists working with major international news outlets, were killed in a double Israeli airstrike on Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
The journalists, confirmed by Reuters, Associated Press (AP), Al Jazeera, and Middle East Eye, were covering events at the hospital when the attack occurred. Four medical workers were also reported dead, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said.
Footage from the scene shows rescuers rushing to help victims of the initial strike before a second blast struck the area, hitting those providing aid.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the incident as a “tragic mishap” and said the military was carrying out a full investigation.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said the latest deaths raise the toll of journalists killed in Gaza since the war began in October 2023 to nearly 200, making it the deadliest conflict for reporters ever documented. According to CPJ, more journalists have been killed in Gaza in the last two years than worldwide in the preceding three years combined.
Since the war’s onset, Israel has barred independent international reporters from entering Gaza, permitting only limited, supervised access through the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). As a result, much of the global coverage has relied heavily on local journalists.
**Eyewitness Accounts and Victims Identified**
Video evidence from Monday’s strike captured a doctor holding up bloodied clothing at the hospital entrance in the aftermath of the first explosion, moments before another blast forced people to scatter as glass shattered and debris filled the air. In another livestream, emergency workers and journalists positioned on a hospital staircase were struck directly, leaving smoke, rubble, and visible casualties.
Reuters confirmed that its cameraman, Husam al-Masri, was killed while operating a live feed from the hospital roof. The broadcast cut out at the moment of the first strike. Photographer Hatem Khaled, also working with Reuters, was wounded in the second explosion. AP said freelance journalist Mariam Dagga, 33, also died in the attack.
Al Jazeera’s Mohammad Salama, Middle East Eye contributor Ahmed Abu Aziz, and freelance photographer Moaz Abu Taha were among the dead. While US broadcaster NBC initially listed Taha as affiliated with the network, it later clarified he was not its staff. Reuters confirmed he had worked with several media organisations.
The Hamas-run Civil Defence reported that one of its members was also killed. Aid worker Hadil Abu Zaid, who was at the hospital at the time, described the devastation as “unbearable,” recalling scenes of casualties in and around the intensive care unit.
**International Condemnation**
The strike has drawn widespread condemnation. UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for a “prompt and impartial investigation,” stressing the urgent need for an “immediate and permanent ceasefire.”
Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), said the killing of more journalists was “silencing the last remaining voices reporting about children dying silently amid famine.”
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said he was “horrified” by the attack, while French President Emmanuel Macron described it as “intolerable.”
