Israel kills Al Jazeera journalist it says was Hamas leader

By Nidal al-Mughrabi and Maayan Lubell

CAIRO/JERUSALEM, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Israel's military said it targeted and killed a Hamas cell leader posing as an Al Jazeera journalist in an airstrike on Gaza City on Sunday, a claim condemned by the Qatari broadcaster.

Anas Al Sharif was among a group of four Al Jazeera journalists and an assistant who died in a strike on a tent near Shifa Hospital in eastern Gaza City, Gaza officials and Al Jazeera said. An official at the hospital said two other people were also killed in the strike.

Al Sharif was the head of a Hamas cell and "was responsible for advancing rocket attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF (Israeli) troops," the Israeli military said in a statement, citing intelligence and documents found in Gaza as evidence.

Palestinian journalists' groups and Al Jazeera denounced the killings. The other journalists killed were Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher and Mohammed Noufal, Al Jazeera said.

A press freedom group and a UN expert previously warned that Al Sharif's life was in danger due to his reporting from Gaza. U.N. Special Rapporteur Irene Khan said last month that Israel's claims against him were unsubstantiated.

In July, the Committee to Protect Journalists urged the international community to protect Al Sharif.

Al Sharif, whose X account showed more than 500,000 followers, posted on the platform minutes before his death that Israel had been intensely bombarding Gaza City for more than two hours.

Calling Al Sharif "one of Gaza's bravest journalists," Al Jazeera said the attack "is a desperate attempt to silence voices in anticipation of the occupation of Gaza."

Palestinian militant group Hamas, which runs Gaza, said the killing may signal the start of an Israeli offensive. "The assassination of journalists and the intimidation of those who remain paves the way for a major crime that the occupation is planning to commit in Gaza City," Hamas said in a statement.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he would launch a new offensive to dismantle Hamas strongholds in Gaza, where a hunger crisis is escalating after 22 months of war.

"Anas Al Sharif and his colleagues were among the last remaining voices in Gaza conveying the tragic reality to the world," Al Jazeera said.

The Hamas-run Gaza government media office said 237 journalists have been killed since the war started on October 7, 2023.