Three more journalists were killed in Gaza in an Israeli attack

The head of a prominent media institution in Gaza and two other journalists were killed over the weekend in Israel’s offensive on the territory, their relatives said Sunday, adding to the dozens of reporters who have died in the six-week conflict.

The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said the deaths over the weekend brought to 48 the number of journalists and media workers it had confirmed killed in the region since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 and subsequent Israeli attack.

CPJ, whose list covers journalists killed on both sides of the conflict, although most have been in Gaza, said it seeks at least two sources to verify each death. It said the death toll included 43 Palestinians, four Israelis and one Lebanese.

“Journalists across the region are making great sacrifices to cover this shocking conflict. Those in Gaza, in particular, have paid, and continue to pay, an unprecedented toll and face exponential threats,” Sherif Mansour, Middle East and North CPJ’s Africa program coordinator said in an email to Reuters.

On Sunday, Belal Jadallah, a journalist and head of the board of Press House-Palestine, a non-governmental organization, was killed and his pharmacist brother-in-law seriously wounded, his sister and other relatives said. Reuters.

Jadala told his sister earlier on Sunday that he was leaving Gaza City for the south. He was killed in the Zeitoun area of ​​Gaza City, his sister said, adding that the people who found him and took him to a medical center where he was pronounced dead said he was killed by an Israeli tank shell.

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Reuters could not independently verify that report or that of the other two journalists killed this weekend.

Four of Jadala’s relatives work for Reuters in Gaza or abroad. One of the journalists on CPJ’s death list is Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah who was killed in Lebanon near the border with Israel on 13 October.

In addition to Jadallah, two freelance journalists – Hassouna Sleem and Sary Mansour – were killed Saturday in an Israeli attack on the Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, their relatives and Palestinian health officials said. Health officials said 17 people died in the incident.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the deaths of Jadala or the others.

In the past, the Israeli military has said it was continuing its offensive to dislodge Hamas after the October 7 attack and would review individual cases at a later date. He also said that he was making every effort to mitigate the damage to civilians.

Press House-Palestine states on its website that its overall goal is to contribute to the development of an “independent Palestinian media, reflecting the values ​​and principles of democracy and freedom of expression.”