An Israeli airstrike in Gaza killed an Al Jazeera photojournalist on Sunday, marking the one-year anniversary of a similar attack that claimed the life of one of his colleagues.
Ahmad Al-Louh, 39, along with four others, died when the airstrike targeted the Civil Defense office in Nuseirat Camp, central Gaza. The casualties were treated at Al Awda Hospital.
Al Jazeera condemned the attack, stating that Al-Louh was “brutally killed” while covering a rescue operation for a family severely injured in an earlier bombing.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed the strike, stating it was a “precise” attack targeting the Civil Defense offices, which they claimed were being used as a “command-and-control center” by Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants planning an “imminent terror attack” against IDF forces.
The IDF also claimed Al-Louh was among those killed in the strike and alleged he had ties to Islamic Jihad, labeling him a “terrorist.” However, the IDF did not provide evidence to support these claims.
In late July, an IDF strike killed Al Jazeera correspondent Ismail al-Ghoul, who it accused of being a Hamas member – an allegation the network slammed as “baseless.”
Dozens of people were killed in Gaza on Sunday due to Israeli airstrikes. Among the victims was Al Jazeera photojournalist Ahmad Al-Louh, who was killed in a strike that also targeted a Civil Defense office in the Nuseirat Camp area.
In Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza, at least 15 people died early in the day when an Israeli airstrike hit a school sheltering displaced individuals. The Civil Defense reported seeing 10 to 15 charred bodies after the bombing, which caused fires at the Khalil Awida school, where about 1,500 displaced people had taken refuge.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) stated that the airstrike targeted a terrorist meeting point in Beit Hanoun. In Deir al-Balah, a strike on tents resulted in the deaths of four people, while six others were killed in a strike on a family home east of Gaza City.
Further south, in Khan Younis, 12 people were killed in an Israeli strike on a UN school compound. The IDF claimed that Hamas had a “command and control center” within the compound. Videos showed the aftermath, with people searching through the rubble and some visible distress as covered bodies, including small ones, were found amidst the destruction.
