Israeli Attack In Gaza Kills Palestinian Journalist Named Hassan Aslih

JAKARTA - Israel's airstrikes in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday killed a well-known Palestinian journalist accused of working with Hamas and is recovering in hospital due to previous attacks.

Israel accused Hassan Aslikh of having hundreds of thousands of followers on social media platforms participating in the attack on October 7, 2023 by the Palestinian militant group Hamas that sparked the war in Gaza.

Indikh documented and uploaded footage of "prisonment, arson, and murder" during the Hamas-led attack on Israel.

Ahmed Siyyam, a member of Gaza's civil emergency services, told Reuters on Tuesday, May 13, the attack hit the third floor of the Nasser Hospital building in the southern city of Kahn Younis, where dozens of patients and injured victims were being treated.

Two patients, including Aslih, were killed and several others injured, the health ministry said.

The Israeli military said it attacked "an important Hamas terrorist operating from within the command and control center" located at the hospital. They did not name them.

Reuters footage showed severe damage to one of the hospital buildings, including medical equipment and beds in it.

"I came to the hospital without knowing whether to mourn the martyrs, treat patients and injured, or treat staff who no longer feel safe," said Atef Al-Hout, director of Nasser Hospital.

According to the International Journalists Federation, 160 journalists and media workers have been killed in Gaza since the start of the war.

Officials in Gaza, where Hamas took control in 2007, named the number 215, and accused Israel of deliberately targeting journalists.

Israel denies targeting journalists and says it is trying to avoid harm to civilians.

Indikh heads the Alam24 news agency and works as a freelance photo journalist. Previously, he worked with several Western news organizations. He was injured last month in a deadly attack on a tent at Nasser hospital complex.