A journalist in Gaza who wrote for Al Jazeera has been accused of holding three hostages in his home with his family before he was killed by Israeli forces.
Abdallah Aljamal, who also worked as a spokesman for the Hamas-run Labour Ministry, was taken down in a raid over the weekend after special forces soldiers stormed his central Gaza home and rescued hostages Almog Meir Jan, 21, Andri Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41, according to the Israeli military.
“This is further proof that the Hamas terrorist organization uses the civilian population as a human shield,” the IDF said in a statement.
Aljamal’s death was originally reported by Rami Abdu, the head of the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, who said that Israel Defence Forces soldiers allegedly stormed the journalist’s home and killed him and several members of his family.
The IDF said that Aljamal was allegedly keeping the hostages inside his home, but made no mention of what happened to his family.
“‘Journalist’ Abdallah Aljamal was a Hamas terrorist holding Almog, Andrey and Shlomi hostage in his family’s home in Nuseirat,” the IDF wrote on X.
“No press vest can make him innocent of the crimes he has committed. @AlJazeera what’s this terrorist doing on your website?”
It is believed Aljamal wrote a column for Al Jazeera in 2019, but the outlet denied that he was ever an employee, the New York Post reported.
A senior correspondent with the outlet said that Aljamal was a freelance writer, but never contributed to Al Jazeera.
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He had written for the Palestine Chronicle, covering the deaths of Palestinians in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023.
Recent stories written by Aljamal centred on the ongoing IDF operation in Nuseirat, where he lived and where Israeli intelligence determined he was holding three of the four hostages rescued near a refugee camp, according to the Post.
The Palestine Chronicle is a Washington-based non-profit organization that works to provide daily news to Gaza.
The outlet confirmed that Aljamal was a contributor reporting on the ground in Gaza, but made no mention that he was allegedly holding three hostages.