25/8/2025
Press Release
Al-Dameer: Calls for an Independent Investigation into the Crime of Targeting Journalists and Humanitarian Workers at Nasser Medical Complex
Al-Dameer Association for Human Rights – Gaza, is closely following the heinous crime committed by Israeli occupation forces on the morning of Monday, 25 August 2025, at approximately 10:30 AM. A suicide drone strike targeted the top floor of the Al-Yassin Building within the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis Governorate. The first strike resulted in the killing of journalist Hussam Atiya Abdulrahman Al-Masri, a photographer for Reuters News Agency, and one other civilian.
Following the initial strike, civil defense teams rushed to retrieve the bodies of the martyrs and rescue the wounded. However, the occupation forces deliberately escalated the crime by launching a second direct attack that targeted both civil defense teams and journalists who were documenting the aftermath. The second strike hit them directly in front of cameras, in a chilling display of systematic killing and public extermination.
This second attack culminated in a horrific massacre, leaving 18 people dead, including 14 civilians who were present inside the hospital at the time. Among the journalists killed were:
- Mohammed Saber Ibrahim Salama, photographer for Al Jazeera,
- Maryam Riyad Mohammed Abu Daqa, journalist affiliated with multiple media outlets including The Independent,
- Moaz Mohammed Abu Taha, correspondent for NBC News,
- Ahmed Khaled Abu Aziz, journalist working with various media organizations.
In addition, Emad Abdul Haleem Ali Al-Shaer, a member of the civil defense, was killed, and 24 others – journalists and civilians – were wounded.
Al-Dameer Association affirms that this attack constitutes a full-fledged war crime, as the deliberate targeting of journalists and rescue personnel is a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law – particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention, which explicitly prohibits targeting civilians and humanitarian workers. The targeting of journalists further represents a double crime, aimed not only at taking lives but also at suppressing truth and concealing evidence of war crimes.
In this context, Al-Dameer urgently calls for a transparent and independent investigation into this crime, which was carried out in full view of the world and clearly signals the occupation’s confidence in committing atrocities with impunity. This places an increased responsibility on the international community to act immediately to halt such crimes and ensure that the perpetrators do not escape accountability.
Accordingly, Al-Dameer Association for Human Rights calls for:
- The United Nations and the Human Rights Council to establish an independent and urgent international investigative committee to examine this crime and all crimes committed against civilians in the Gaza Strip.
- The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to launch an immediate investigation into the deliberate targeting of journalists and civil defense teams as a war crime and crime against humanity.
- The International Federation of Journalists and all global media institutions to adopt firm positions and exert pressure to end the targeting of journalists in Gaza and ensure their protection.
End
Al-Dameer Association for Human Rights – Gaza