AMSTERDAM

The Dutch Foreign Ministry has requested an explanation from Israel over the killing of six journalists, including Al Jazeera correspondent Anas Al-Sharif, in a strike near Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital.

The ministry asked Israel, via its embassy in The Hague, to provide evidence supporting claims that two of the victims, both Al Jazeera reporters, were linked to Hamas. "It is up to the Israeli authorities to provide proof for their allegations," a ministry spokesperson told Anadolu on Tuesday.

The spokesperson said the issue was also raised at the EU foreign ministers' meeting, where Foreign Minister Casper Veldkamp expressed concern about rising violence against journalists during the war in Gaza.

Veldkamp, the ministry said, stressed that "too many people, including journalists, have been killed" in the conflict.

The Dutch Association of Journalists (NVJ) also condemned the killing of al-Sharif, calling it a targeted attack, and urged the foreign minister to impose tougher sanctions on Israel in a letter sent earlier this week.