Five Palestinian journalists killed in Khan Younis hospital strikes

At least five Palestinian journalists were killed in back-to-back Israeli airstrikes on Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis last week, deepening international alarm over the unprecedented toll on reporters covering the Gaza war and triggering a coordinated global protest by news organisations. The dead included Mariam Abu Dagga, Mohammed Salama, Ahmad Abu Aziz, Hussam alMasri and Moaz Abu Taha, who worked for or freelanced with outlets including the Associated Press, Reuters and Al Jazeera, rights groups said.

The hospital attack involved strikes in quick succession, a pattern often called a doubletap in which rescuers and media who respond to an initial strike are hit by a second. Human rights monitors and press freedom groups warned that such strikes are widely considered war crimes. Israeli officials offered varying explanations, at times calling the incident a tragic mishap and at other times saying the strikes targeted a camera allegedly used by Hamas. The military has not publicly released evidence to support the latter claim, and international news organisations have demanded a prompt, transparent investigation.

The killings at Nasser Hospital are the latest in a campaign that...