The IDF reported on Wednesday that military intelligence and documents located in the Gaza Strip confirmed the affiliation of six Al Jazeera network journalists in Gaza with Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
The reporters include Anas Jamal Mahmoud Al-Sharif, Alaa Abdul Aziz Muhammad Salama, Hossam Basel Abdul Karim Shabat, Ashraf Sami Ashour Saraj, Ismail Farid Muhammad Abu Omar and Talal Mahmoud Abdul Rahman Aruki.
“The terrorist-journalist Ismail Farid Muhammad Abu Omar was struck and injured a few months ago in Gaza. The documents once again confirm his involvement in terrorist activities. The Al Jazeera network has attempted to disassociate itself from Omar's terror activities,” the military said in a statement.
In a 2021 list of Hamas operatives, Abu Omar was described as a platoon commander in Hamas’ Khan Yunis Brigade. He is known for accompanying the terrorists on October 7 and documenting the massacre at Kibbutz Nir Oz in real-time. After being injured, he was transferred for treatment in Qatar.
The documents include personnel tables, lists of terror training courses, phone directories and salary records for terrorists, clearly proving their roles as military operatives in Gazan terror groups.
For example, Alaa Salama's name appears in a 2022 salary document for Islamic Jihad operatives, and Talal Aruki is mentioned in a 2019 injury tracking document describing he suffered a fracture in his right leg bone, which was treated with a splint.
"These documents serve as proof of the integration of Hamas terrorists within the Qatari Al Jazeera media network," The military added. "Most of the journalists that the IDF has exposed as operatives in Hamas's military wing spearhead the propaganda for Hamas at Al Jazeera, especially in the northern Gaza Strip.”
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