On 23 August, a joint investigation by The Independent and Independent Arabia revealed that Israel’s 2025 double-tap strike on Nasser Hospital in Gaza, which killed five journalists, may constitute a war crime, leading UK MPs to call for the Israeli government to be held accountable. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) welcomes this call to end impunity and reiterates its demand that those responsible for war crimes in Gaza be brought before international courts.
The investigation by The Independent and Independent Arabia, published on 23 August, examined Israel’s double-tap strike on Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza, which resulted in the killing of five journalists and other civilians. The investigation – which is based on the testimony of eyewitnesses, the disclosures of Israeli whistleblowers, and the analysis of weapons experts and international law experts – clearly indicates war crimes, as the evidence demonstrates an intentional attack on civilians.
Evidence shows that while Israel claimed there was a camera ‘positioned by Hamas’ on the hospital’s external stairwells, it was in fact the Reuters live feed, a fact that was widely known. Furthermore, according to reports published in The Independent, the Israeli military neither contacted the hospital nor issued a warning, despite this being an obligation according to experts in international law.
The first Israeli military strike killed Hossam Al-Masri, a photographer working for Reuters news agency. According to eyewitnesses, following the attack, journalists and first responders – including medics and other civilians – rushed to the strike zone under surveillance from Israeli drones. Another Israeli strike then hit the area, killing more than 20 people, including journalists who were reporting on the situation.
As a result of the attacks, four more journalists were killed, including Mohammed Salama, a photojournalist working for Al Jazeera, Maryam Abu Deqa, who was a reporter for Independent Arabia, Moaz Abu Taha, who worked for NBC News, and Ahmad Abu Aziz, a freelance journalist who worked for media outlets such as the Middle East Eye.
According to The Independent, following the investigation, UK Labour MP Sarah Champion called on the British government to uphold the Geneva Convention, while another Labour MP, Rachael Maskell, demanded the “strongest measures” be taken against the Israeli government. Meanwhile, Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran called for the ICC’s criminal case to move forward.
Séamus Dooley, National Union of Journalists (NUJ) assistant general secretary, said: “The NUJ supports calls from parliamentarians for the UK government to facilitate investigations at the International Criminal Court and exert pressure on the Israeli government to bring an end to its targeting of journalists. As the government resets its foreign policy agenda, the union is writing to the new Foreign Secretary to highlight the need to uphold existing international law and champion a specific and binding UN Convention that would place a requirement on states to protect journalists in all circumstances, investigate every crime, and prosecute the perpetrators.”
IFJ Executive Committee Member, Chairman of the Saudi Journalists Association and Independent Arabia editor-in-chief Adhwan Al-Ahmari, said: “We mourn the killing of our dear colleague and reporter Maryam Abu Deqa and all the journalists who were brutally and intentionally murdered with her. We consider this investigation as part of our ‘duty of care’, which we take very seriously. We’ll pursue this case until justice is served and the killers are held accountable.”
IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said: “Once again, investigations have revealed that Israel must be held accountable for war crimes before the International Criminal Court, and that impunity for the killing of journalists must end. In this regard, we welcome the call by UK MPs for the Israeli government to be held to account, and we invite the international community to consider the findings of this recent investigation in order to bring those responsible for war crimes to justice. We reiterate our call on the UN Secretary-General to report Israel’s failure to respect the principles and responsibilities set out in UN Security Council Resolution 2222.”
Source: IFJ
