BRUSSELS 

UN human rights experts condemned the killing of six more Palestinian journalists in Israeli strikes across Gaza over the past 10 days, warning that the international community must act before all journalistic voices in the enclave are silenced.

At least 248 journalists have been killed in Gaza since October 2023, the highest number in any modern conflict, according to the experts. The victims include two women.

"On the one hand, Israel continues to deny access to any international media and on the other, it kills with impunity local journalists who are the world’s only professional lens into the agony of genocide and famine unfolding in Gaza," Irene Khan, special rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, and Francesca Albanese, special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, said in a statement.

Despite facing starvation, displacement, and targeted attacks, local journalists in Gaza have continued to report on atrocities, including alleged acts of genocide and famine, the experts added.

The latest deaths follow Israel's intensified military operations in Gaza City and come just two weeks after a strike near Al Shifa Hospital killed six journalists, including Al Jazeera's chief Gaza correspondent Anas Al-Sharif.

The UN experts called for independent criminal investigations into the attacks on journalists and demanded full reparation for the families of those killed.

"We urge the international community – member states as well as the key organs of the United Nations to act without delay before Israel shuts down the last voices in Gaza," they said.

Israel has killed more than 63,000 people in Gaza since October 2023, damaged or destroyed most buildings in the enclave and forced multiple migrations. A global hunger monitor says parts of the enclave are now suffering a man-made famine.