Israel-Gaza war: Who was Muhammad Washah? Al Jazeera journalist killed in IDF strikes that targeted his vehicle

Four people were killed in Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, according to local health officials, including an Al Jazeera journalist, as reported by the network.

Health authorities said the strike that killed journalist Muhammad Washah hit a vehicle he was traveling in along Gaza City’s coastal road, also killing another Palestinian man.

“Al Jazeera Media Network strongly condemns the heinous crime of targeting and killing Al Jazeera Mubasher correspondent Mohammed Wishah, following a strike on the vehicle in which he was travelling west of the Gaza Strip,” Qatar-based Al Jazeera Media Network said.

Who was Muhammad Washah?

Muhammad Samir Muhammad Washah was an Al Jazeera Mubasher correspondent killed in an Israeli drone strike on his vehicle in Gaza City on April 8. While colleagues and press groups mourned him as a journalist, the IDF alleged he was a senior Hamas operative involved in weapons production.

“ELIMINATED: Muhammad Samir Muhammad Washah, a Hamas terrorist operating under the guise of an Al Jazeera journalist. Washah, a key terrorist in Hamas’ rocket & weapons production HQ, was also involved in the production and transfer of weapons through Gaza,” Israel Defense Forces claimed.

They added, “The terrorist was actively involved in planning attacks against IDF troops & posed a concrete threat to forces in the area.”

In February 2024, during the peak of the war in Gaza, Israel’s military claimed Washah was part of Hamas’ armed wing and released images it said showed him handling weapons. The military said these images were recovered from a computer seized during a raid in Gaza.

Both Hamas and Al Jazeera rejected those allegations at the time. Following the strike, Israel’s military did not immediately comment, while Al Jazeera reported on its Arabic channel that Washah was killed in a drone attack.

Gaza’s Hamas-run government media office denounced the killing.

Israel-Gaza conflict

In a separate incident, medical officials reported that an Israeli airstrike in central Gaza killed two people, though no further details were given. Israel’s military did not immediately comment.

Israel and Hamas had agreed to a US-brokered deal last October intended to stop the violence, but both sides have since accused each other of violating the agreement.

Since that deal, Israeli attacks have killed at least 700 people, according to available reports, while Israel says four of its soldiers have been killed by militants during the same period.

Israel has also previously been responsible for the deaths of Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. In August 2025, journalist Anas Al Sharif and four colleagues were killed in an airstrike; Israel claimed, without releasing evidence, that he led a Hamas militant cell, an allegation Al Jazeera denied.

Earlier, in May 2022, Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American, was shot dead while covering an Israeli military operation in Jenin in the West Bank. An Israeli investigation later concluded she was likely killed unintentionally by its forces.

The Committee to Protect Journalists reports that 223 journalists and media workers have been killed across Gaza, Lebanon, and Israel. This includes 210 Palestinians killed in Gaza by Israeli forces, 11 in Lebanon, and two Israelis killed during the Hamas-led October 2023 attack that triggered the war.

According to the organisation, Israel has not held anyone accountable for the killing of journalists by its military. An Israeli army spokesperson said the military targets only fighters and military sites, takes steps to avoid harming civilians and journalists, and warns that remaining in active conflict zones carries significant risk.

The military has also, at times, claimed, without publicly verified evidence, that some journalists killed had ties to Hamas, which their employers have denied.

(With inputs from Reuters)