In an attempt to justify his crime, the Israeli occupation army claimed in a statement that Al-Sharif "served as a cell leader in Hamas and was planning rocket attacks against Israel."
The army added in its allegations: "We have previously uncovered intelligence information and numerous documents found inside the Gaza Strip that proved Sharif's affiliation with Hamas' military ranks. These documents also once again confirmed Sharif's terrorist activities, which Al Jazeera attempted to disavow."
The military claimed that it had taken numerous steps before the raid to reduce the possibility of civilian casualties, including the use of precision munitions, aerial reconnaissance, and other intelligence.
In a statement published on the X platform last July, Al-Sharif denied any political affiliation, emphasizing that he works as a journalist whose mission is to convey the truth as it exists on the ground, without bias.
He denounced the campaigns of threats and incitement against him by the Israeli occupation army, saying, "Speaking the truth at a time when Gaza is suffering from a deadly famine has become, in the eyes of the occupation, a threat."
"An attempt to silence voices"
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Arab and international responses continue to reject Israel's decision to reoccupy the Gaza Strip.
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The occupation continues its raids in several areas, and new settlement outposts are established in the West Bank.
In the same context, the Qatari Al Jazeera network condemned, early Monday morning, what it described as the "premeditated" Israeli assassination of its correspondents and photographers in the Gaza Strip, considering it a "desperate attempt to silence voices in anticipation of the occupation of Gaza."
The network said in a statement, its first comment on the incident: "We condemn the premeditated assassination of our correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqea, and cameramen Ibrahim Zaher and Mohammed Noufal," adding that "the order to kill Anas al-Sharif, one of Gaza's bravest journalists, and his colleagues is a desperate attempt to silence voices in anticipation of the occupation of Gaza."
The statement noted that "many Israeli military officials have repeatedly incited and called for the targeting of Anas al-Sharif and his companions," and held "the occupation army and its government responsible for the targeting and assassination of their team."
He added, "The assassination of our correspondents by the Israeli occupation forces is yet another blatant and deliberate attack on press freedom," explaining that "Anas al-Sharif and his colleagues were among the last remaining voices in Gaza conveying the tragic reality to the world."
In its statement, Al Jazeera reiterated its strong condemnation and denunciation of "the heinous crimes and the ongoing attempts by the Israeli authorities to silence the voice of truth," and warned that "impunity and lack of accountability enable Israel to continue its aggression and encourage it to commit further brutality against witnesses to the truth."
Late Sunday evening, Al Jazeera correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqeh, along with three other members of the channel's crew, were killed in an Israeli airstrike that targeted a journalists' tent near Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, in the northern part of the Strip.
The martyrdom of Al-Sharif and his colleagues comes two days after the Israeli government approved a plan early Friday morning to occupy the entire Gaza Strip, as part of a war of extermination that has been ongoing for the 22nd month.
