Israeli Fire Kills Journalists and Children in Gaza on Deadliest Day Since Ceasefire
CAIRO — Israeli forces killed at least 11 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, including three journalists, two 13-year-old boys and a woman, according to hospital officials, in what became one of the enclave’s deadliest days since a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect in October.
The killings came as the United States seeks to push forward negotiations to implement the ceasefire’s complex second phase, amid persistent violence in areas near Israeli troop positions and contested zones.
Journalists Killed While Filming
Among the dead were three Palestinian journalists who were filming near a newly established displacement camp in central Gaza when their vehicle was struck, according to Mohammed Mansour, a spokesperson for the Egyptian government committee managing the site.
The strike occurred in the Netzarim area, roughly 5 kilometers (3 miles) from an Israeli-controlled zone, Mansour said. He added that the vehicle was known to the Israeli military as belonging to the committee. Video footage circulating online showed a burned-out vehicle smoldering on the roadside.
Israel’s military said it had identified suspects operating a drone that it claimed posed a threat to its forces, but did not directly address the deaths of the journalists.
One of those killed, Abdul Raouf Shaat, was a regular contributor to Agence France-Presse, though AFP said he was not on assignment for the agency at the time of his death.
“Abdul was much loved by the AFP team covering Gaza. They remember him as a kind-hearted colleague,” the agency said in a statement, calling for a full investigation.
Children Among the Dead
The two boys, both 13, were killed in separate incidents, according to Palestinian health officials.
In the first, a teenager, his father and a 22-year-old man were struck by Israeli drone fire on the eastern edge of the Bureij refugee camp, hospital officials at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah said. It was not immediately clear whether the group had crossed into an Israeli-controlled area.
In another incident, Israeli troops shot and killed 13-year-old Moatsem al-Sharafy in the eastern town of Bani Suheila, according to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. Video shared online showed the boy’s father weeping over his body.
The boy’s mother, Safaa al-Sharafy, said her son had gone out to collect firewood so the family could cook.
“He went out in the morning, hungry,” she told The Associated Press, crying. “He told me he’d go quickly and come back.”
Rising Toll Since Ceasefire
Hospital officials also reported that a Palestinian woman was shot and killed by Israeli troops in the Muwasi area of Khan Younis, while three brothers died when a tank shell hit Bureij refugee camp.
According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, more than 470 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the ceasefire began on Oct. 10. At least 77 of those deaths occurred near a ceasefire line separating Israeli-held areas from much of Gaza’s population.
The ministry, which operates under the Hamas-led government, maintains casualty records that U.N. agencies and independent experts consider generally reliable.
Press Under Fire
The deaths of the journalists underscored the risks faced by Palestinian media workers in Gaza, where Israel has barred international journalists from entering independently, aside from limited military-guided tours. News organizations rely heavily on local journalists and residents to document events on the ground.
The Committee to Protect Journalists says more than 200 Palestinian journalists and media workers have been killed in Gaza since the war began in 2023, including visual journalist Mariam Dagga, who had worked with the AP and other outlets. Nearly five months after Dagga and four other journalists were killed in a strike on a hospital, Israel’s military says its investigation is ongoing.
Broader Regional Escalation
Separately on Wednesday, Israel’s air force carried out multiple strikes in southern and eastern Lebanon, targeting what it described as Hezbollah weapons storage sites and smuggling routes along the border with Syria. The military said it struck four border crossings in the northeastern Hermel region.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said 19 people, including journalists, were wounded in the southern village of Qennarit. Drone strikes on vehicles in Bazouriyeh and Zahrani killed two people, according to Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned the attacks as “systematic aggression,” as near-daily Israeli strikes continue more than a year after a ceasefire ended the 14-month Israel-Hezbollah war.
Ceasefire Strains Persist
The first phase of the October ceasefire halted nearly two years of fighting between Israel and Hamas, securing the return of hostages in exchange for Palestinian detainees and a partial Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. All but one hostage, living or dead, have been returned.
Relatives of Ran Gvili, a 24-year-old Israeli police officer killed during Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack, renewed calls Wednesday for the recovery of his remains.
“We, the people of Israel, will not give up on anyone,” his mother, Talik Gvili, said, urging Israeli and U.S. leaders to act.
Hamas said it has provided all available information on Gvili’s body to ceasefire mediators and accused Israel of obstructing searches in areas under its control.
As diplomatic efforts continue, Wednesday’s deaths highlighted the fragility of the ceasefire and the persistent danger facing civilians and journalists in Gaza.
