BRUSSELS – The European Union has criticized the Israeli attack in Gaza City that killed five Al Jazeera journalists, including Anas al-Sharif, a correspondent. Kaja Kallas, the EU’s foreign policy chief, spoke out against it during a virtual meeting of the bloc’s foreign ministers.
The Israeli military said that Sharif was in charge of a Hamas “terrorist cell” and was “responsible for advancing rocket attacks” against Israeli civilians and soldiers. Kallas said that she understood Israel’s claims but highlighted the necessity for hard proof. She stated, “In these cases, there needs to be clear proof, in terms of the rule of law, to keep journalists from being targeted.”
The journalists’ deaths make the already high number of media professionals who have died in the fighting even higher. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) says that at least 26 journalists and media workers have died since the violence started on October 7. Most of them were Palestinians.
The EU has mostly been split on the crisis, with some members strongly backing Israel and others criticizing what it has done in Gaza. This internal rift has made it harder for the bloc to act as one.
Kallas also talked about the humanitarian situation in Gaza. She said that even while aid access has improved, the needs of the people “are still much greater.” She ordered Israel to let more trucks enter the area so that humanitarian aid might be distributed more evenly.