Gaza City — Israel has once again unleashed devastation on Gaza, this time striking the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, killing at least 20 people, including five journalists working with some of the world’s largest media outlets. From uranium theft to genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, Israel continues to commit war crimes under Washington’s protection, emboldened by impunity and silence from its Western allies.
The attack unfolded in two waves, according to witnesses. The first strike tore through the hospital area, killing Reuters cameraman Hussam al-Masri, who had been operating a live feed that went dark at the exact moment of impact. Minutes later, as rescue workers, doctors, and fellow journalists rushed to the scene, a second strike detonated, killing more and leaving scores wounded. The “double-tap” nature of the assault has raised grave suspicions among observers that Israel deliberately targeted not only the hospital but those who came to document its destruction.
Among the dead were Mariam Abu Dagga, a freelance visual journalist working for the Associated Press, Al Jazeera cameraman Mohammed Salama, and photographer Moaz Abu Taha. Ahmad Abu Aziz, another journalist caught in the second explosion, succumbed to his wounds hours later. Reuters confirmed that its contractor, Hatem Khaled, was also injured while filming the aftermath.
Doctors inside Nasser Hospital described chaotic scenes. One physician, standing at the shattered entrance, displayed bloodied clothes of child patients to assembled reporters just moments before another blast forced them to scatter in panic. Video captured from the site showed injured civilians dragging themselves to safety through glass and rubble.
The Hamas-run Civil Defence reported that medics, patients, and hospital staff were among the casualties, underscoring once more that Gaza’s already battered healthcare system has been systematically dismantled under Israeli firepower. The strikes not only killed, but crippled the hospital’s capacity to treat survivors of Israel’s ongoing military campaign.
Israel, while confirming it carried out the attack, issued a carefully worded statement claiming that it “regrets any harm to uninvolved individuals” and insisting that it “does not target journalists as such.” Yet these platitudes ring hollow when compared with the staggering reality: the Committee to Protect Journalists now reports that more than 190 journalists have been killed during 22 months of war in Gaza, making this the deadliest conflict for the press in modern history.
Global outrage has begun to mount. The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate accused Israel of conducting “an open war on free media,” while international press freedom groups condemned the killings as part of a broader effort to silence witnesses to the Gaza genocide. Rights advocates argue that these repeated “collateral” deaths expose a calculated strategy designed to deny the world any independent record of Israel’s atrocities.
According to Reuters, the Nasser Medical Complex was hit in two successive strikes, leaving at least 15 people dead, including four journalists. Also confirmed that its cameraman, Hussam al-Masri, was killed instantly while operating a live broadcast feed. Another contractor, photographer Hatem Khaled, was injured in the second blast while documenting the aftermath. The agency said it was “devastated” by the loss and described the attack as part of the relentless danger facing media workers in Gaza.
The Guardian reported a higher toll, with Gaza’s health authorities stating that at least 20 people had been killed. The paper detailed how doctors at the hospital were forced to treat victims under fire, with glass and debris raining down during the second strike. It emphasized that not only journalists but also patients and healthcare workers were among the dead, underscoring Israel’s ongoing campaign against Gaza’s medical infrastructure.
The Associated Press put the confirmed death toll at 19, noting that its own freelancer, Mariam Abu Dagga, was among those killed. It described her as a 33-year-old visual journalist who had documented Gaza’s devastation for years before becoming a victim of the very violence she sought to expose. The agency said it was “shocked and saddened” by her death and reiterated calls for accountability for the repeated targeting of journalists in Gaza.
These accounts, despite slight differences in casualty figures, converge on a grim truth: Israel’s strikes on Nasser Hospital obliterated not just lives but also the principle of press freedom itself. Journalists, patients, and doctors have become indistinguishable targets in a war where hospitals are bombed, cameras are silenced, and truth itself is under siege.
