Israeli forces surrounded and attacked the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza on Friday, wounding several journalists and at least one other person.
Turkish state broadcaster TRT accused Israeli tanks of launching a “targeted attack” on the journalists, including TRT Arabi cameraman Sami Shehada, who lost a leg, and correspondent Sami Barhoum, who suffered minor injuries. CNN stringer Mohammad Al-Sawalhi was also among those hurt.
The TRT statement called the assault “a deliberate attack against media professionals, marked clearly with ‘PRESS’ on their jackets” and said it was “part of a broader pattern of violence” against journalists in Gaza. As of Friday, at least 95 media workers have been killed covering the war, according to preliminary figures from the Committee to Protect Journalists.
CNN video shows Shehada’s right leg was severed.
“We were filming in a safe place, I was wearing my flak jacket and my helmet — even the car I was in had a ‘PRESS’ and ‘TV’ sign marked on it. It was clear that I was a civilian and a journalist. We were targeted,” he told CNN from his operating bed.
“It will not stop me from working, even if I have to walk on crutches. I will show the whole world the crimes of the Israeli occupation against civilians, people and journalists. I am one of them and I will not leave my camera even if I die,” he told Al-Sawalhi.
CNN has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for comment on the attack and allegations that journalists were targeted at the camp.
Video from the scene: Footage filmed by Al-Sawalhi shows people — including children, women and the elderly — taking cover in shops and running away in panic as repeated artillery fire and gunshots can be heard in the near distance.
CNN spoke to an elderly man named Saleh, who said he was trying to flee the area after Israeli tanks surrounded the camp and that he’d been hit by shrapnel.
Moments later, Saleh could be seen crossing the street when intense artillery fire struck the road a few meters from where Al-Sawalhi was filming. The journalist was hit by shrapnel, slightly injuring his right hand.
Graphic footage of the aftermath shows the elderly man severely wounded, with a bloody head injury. Saleh, Al-Sawalhi, and a number of other journalists were taken to Al-Awda Hospital for treatment, CNN footage shows.
Recent attacks: Nuseirat camp, located north of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, has been the target of several Israeli airstrikes in recent days, including one that killed 14 people Tuesday, according to the spokesperson for Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital.
Sumber: www.cnn.com
