The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) strongly condemns the assassination of the journalist, Hassan Esleih, who was targeted at dawn today while lying in a hospital bed at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis. PCHR asserts that the ongoing, escalating targeting and killing of journalists leaves no doubt that these acts are deliberate, intended to intimidate and silence journalists and prevent them from conveying the truth to the world. These attacks form an integral part of the broader crime of genocide committed in the Gaza Strip by the IOF. In addition, PCHR affirms that the continued impunity granted to Israeli forces encourages further violations and crimes against journalists and their families without accountability. According to information collected by PCHR’s field team, an Israeli drone fired a missile at a room within the Burn Unit of Nasser Medical Complex at dawn on Tuesday, 13 May 2025. The room was occupied by Hassan Abdel Fattah Esleih, 37, a freelance journalist, who was killed instantly. Another patient was also killed, and 12 others were injured—patients who were receiving treatment in the same ward. Esleih had been hospitalized since 7 April after sustaining injuries and burns in an Israeli airstrike that targeted a journalists’ tent next to the same hospital. That attack killed two journalists and wounded ten others, including Esleih.

Esleih, a prominent social media activist and contributor to several local media agencies, had been under threat since the beginning of the war on Gaza. Israeli forces launched an incitement campaign against him following his coverage of the events on 7 October, during which he was professionally documenting the unfolding situation.

With Esleih’s killing, the number of journalists killed since 7 October 2023 has risen to 215, according to the Government Media Office—the highest number ever recorded globally since journalist death tracking began in 1992. Among the killed are 13 female journalists. Most were killed in Israeli airstrikes—either from warplanes or drones—while others were shot by snipers. A significant number were killed along with their families in targeted attacks on their homes, while others were killed in indiscriminate bombings during the ongoing genocide. Some were directly targeted, and others lost their lives while performing their journalistic duties. An additional 194 journalists have been injured under various circumstances during the assault. The IOF have also targeted a large number of social media activists, regularly inciting against them and threatening them with death if they did not remain silent.

PCHR stresses that the targeting of journalists aims to isolate victims and suppress the documentation and dissemination of the genocide being committed against civilians in Gaza. Therefore, PCHR calls on the international community to publicly condemn the targeting of

journalists, to pressure Israel to immediately cease such attacks, and to take urgent steps to provide international protection for civilians, including journalists, in the Gaza Strip.

PCHR affirms that the deliberate killing of journalists constitutes a war crime under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC), as per Article 8 of the Rome Statute. It also represents an arbitrary deprivation of life, in violation of Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and requires accountability. Targeting journalists is also an attack on the right to freedom of the press and freedom of expression, protected under international human rights law, particularly Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 19 of the ICCPR.

In light of this, PCHR urges the international community to:

• Pressure Israel to immediately cease targeting journalists;
• Act swiftly to provide international protection for civilians, including journalists, in Gaza;
• Activate mechanisms to pressure Israeli authorities to halt their crimes and comply with international law.

PCHR also calls on international journalism bodies, including the International Federation of Journalists, to urgently intervene and pressure Israel to be held accountable for its killing and targeting of journalists in Palestine. Furthermore, PCHR calls on the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to expedite practical measures to complete investigations into crimes committed in Palestine, including the killing of journalists who are sacrificing their lives to reveal the truth. PCHR also urges the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression to intensify efforts to protect this right and investigate crimes committed by the IOF against journalists and media outlets in Palestine.