Gaza – A prominent Al Jazeera journalist, previously threatened by Israel, has been killed along with four colleagues in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City.

Anas al Sharif, one of Al Jazeera’s most recognisable reporters in Gaza, died on Sunday night while in a tent for journalists outside Al Shifa hospital. The Qatar-based network said seven people were killed in total, including correspondent Mohammed Qreiqeh and camera operators Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal and Moamen Aliwa.

Al Jazeera described Sharif as “one of Gaza’s bravest journalists” and called the strike “a desperate attempt to silence voices in anticipation of the occupation of Gaza.”

The Israel Defence Force acknowledged carrying out the strike, alleging Sharif was “head of a terrorist cell in Hamas” and responsible for advancing rocket attacks. It said intelligence and documents recovered in Gaza supported its claim. Rights advocates, however, said Sharif was targeted for his frontline reporting and that Israel had provided no credible evidence. The United Nations had earlier dismissed similar Israeli accusations as “unfounded”. “I am deeply alarmed by repeated threats and accusations of the Israeli army against Anas al Sharif, the last surviving journalist of Al Jazeera in northern Gaza,” Irene Khan, UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression, said two weeks ago.