Shafaq News – Gaza (Updated at 15:22)

An Israeli airstrike on the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis killed five journalists, Gaza’s Government Media Office reported on Monday, raising the death toll of media workers since the war began to 245.

The victims were identified as Reuters photojournalist Hossam al-Masri, Al Jazeera cameraman Mohammed Salama, Maryam Abu Deqqa—who contributed to Independent Arabia and the Associated Press—NBC News correspondent Moaz Abu Taha, and journalist Ahmed Abu Aziz, who worked with Quds Feed Network and other outlets.

In a statement, the office said the journalists were working inside the hospital when the strike hit, labeling it a “massacre” that also killed civilians and injured others. It accused Israel of “waging a systematic campaign to silence Palestinian reporters,” while urging international press unions and media organizations to condemn the killings and demand accountability.

Responsibility, it added, extends beyond Israel to the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France, charging them with complicity in what it described as “an ongoing genocide.” The office appealed for urgent protective measures and legal action through international courts.

The strike adds to warnings from global watchdogs like Reporters Without Borders, which has declared Gaza the world’s most dangerous place for journalists.

According to the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate, 49 media workers remain imprisoned since the war began on October 7, 2023.