Israeli army admits to assassinating Al Jazeera journalist in Gaza

JERUSALEM/ISTANBUL

The Israeli army on Tuesday admitted assassinating a journalist for the Qatari television Al Jazeera in the Gaza Strip.

Military spokesman Avichay Adraee said that Hossam Shabat was killed on Monday in a joint operation by the army and the Shin Bet domestic security agency.

He alleged that Shabat, a correspondent for Qatar-based Al Jazeera Mubasher channel, was a sniper in Hamas’ Beit Hanoun Battalion and participated in attacks against Israeli targets during the Gaza war, a claim vehemently denied by Palestinian journalists.

At least 208 Palestinian journalists have been killed in Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip since October 2023, according to the government media office.

The Israeli army launched a surprise aerial campaign on the Gaza Strip on March 18, killing nearly 800 people, injuring over 1,600 others, and shattering a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold in January.

More than 50,100 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and over 113,700 injured in a brutal Israeli military onslaught on Gaza since October 2023.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.