AT LEAST three journalists have been killed in an Israeli attack on the Anglican Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza, it was reported on Thursday. The Archbishop of York has joined the Archbishop in Jerusalem, Dr Hosam Naoum, in condemning the incident.
“This morning at about 10.20 a.m. local time, Israeli forces fired inside the compound of our Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, killing three journalists, as well as two others, including a father who was escorting his son to our surgical unit for treatment from previous injuries,” a statement posted by Dr Naoum at noon on Thursday said.
The “unprovoked assault” also injured 30 others, including four members of hospital staff, according to Dr Naoum’s statement, which condemned the attack in “the strongest possible terms, calling upon the Israeli Army to respect the internationally protected sanctity of Ahli Hospital and all other hospitals throughout the Gaza Strip”.
Al-Jazeera and Middle East Eye both reported that four journalists were killed in the attack.
On Thursday afternoon, Archbishop Cottrell said that he condemned “yet another callous, reckless attack” on the hospital, which had most recently been damaged by an Israeli strike on Palm Sunday (News, 14 April).
“Despite our repeated requests, the Israeli Government has been unable to prove its claims that Al-Ahli Hospital has been used by Hamas. Instead this is part of a relentless and outrageous pattern of attacks on hospitals and healthcare facilities in Gaza. There is no justification for this under international humanitarian law,” Archbishop Cottrell said.
He referred to the recent statement in which the House of Bishops described the bombardment of Gaza as a “war of aggression” and a “grave sin that violently assaults God-given human dignity” (News, 22 May).
“These bombings must stop,” Archbishop Cottrell said on Thursday.
The Bishop of Chelmsford, Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani, wrote on social media that it was “devastating to hear about yet another attack on the Al-Ahli Anglican hospital in Gaza”.
The latest attack amounted to “more lives lost in a tragedy that seems to see no end”, Dr Francis-Dehqani, who visited the Middle East in January (News, 24 January), said: “I continue to stand in solidarity with all who suffer, calling for peace, justice and dignity for Palestinians and Israelis alike.”
The Bishop of Gloucester, the Rt Revd Rachel Treweek, who visited Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank at the end of May, also expressed her solidarity with the “grief and outrage” being expressed about the attack. “I pray and cry out for justice and mercy for all people in Occupied Palestinian Territories and Israel,” she said.
Israel prevents foreign journalists from entering Gaza, except when under the supervision of the IDF.
In April, the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs published a paper analysing the numbers of journalists killed in Gaza since the Israeli bombardment of the territory began in response to the Hamas attacks of 7 October 2023.
Between 147 and 232 journalists had been killed during that time, according to different sources. In comparison, just 69 reporters were killed during the two world wars.