Al Jazeera ‘Cameraman’ Killed In Gaza Was Hamas Sniper Operating Under Press Cover, IDF Says

An Al Jazeera cameraman mourned as a journalist killed by Israel was also a Hamas sniper operative, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

Ahmed Washah was killed Saturday in central Gaza after an Israeli drone targeted a home in the Bureij refugee camp. Al Jazeera and multiple media outlets described him as a cameraman for Al Jazeera Mubasher, Al Jazeera’s Arabic-language live channel. Al Jazeera said two other people were also killed and others were wounded.

But the IDF says Washah was not simply a journalist and was targeted in the strike because he was “a terrorist in Hamas’ military wing who served as a sniper operative.” The IDF also said Washah had recently advanced sniper attack plans and worked alongside his brother, Mohammed Washah, whom the military described as a key terrorist in Hamas’ rocket and weapons production headquarters. Ahmed was reportedly killed alongside Siba’i Abu Hasna, a member of Hamas’ Shadow Unit, which is responsible for guarding hostages kidnapped into Gaza.

Ahmed was widely presented as an Al Jazeera cameraman killed by Israel. While leaving out his ties to Hamas, NBC News reported that Ahmed was an Al Jazeera cameraman killed by Israel and noted that his brother Mohammed, an Al Jazeera Mubasher correspondent, was killed in a separate Israeli strike in April. Al Jazeera, meanwhile, said Ahmed became the 12th network employee killed by Israel and said he had covered numerous stories for the outlet, including what Al Jazeera described as “several massacres” committed by Israel in Gaza.

The IDF posted publicly that Ahmed “served as an Al Jazeera photojournalist” while simultaneously operating as a Hamas sniper. The IDF also described Mohammed as “a key terrorist in Hamas’ rocket and weapons production headquarters” and said he also operated “under the guise of an Al Jazeera journalist” before he was killed in April.

After the IDF’s claims about Ahmed were challenged online, it posted a photo of his apparent military ID and a video showing him firing a rifle into the air. 

That context has received less attention from the legacy media than the initial description of Ahmed as a journalist killed by Israel. A Google AI Overview shown for a simple search of “Al Jazeera journalist” described Ahmed as “an Al Jazeera cameraman who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in central Gaza” and listed him among “recent notable and slain journalists from the region.” The summary does not mention the IDF’s claim that he was a Hamas sniper operative.

The same pattern appeared in headlines from major outlets. NBC headlined its article, “Al Jazeera cameraman killed in Gaza months after his journalist brother died in a separate strike.” The Guardian’s headline read, “Al Jazeera cameraman Ahmed Wishah killed in Israeli strike on Gaza.”

An Associated Press report carried by NDTV also identified Ahmed as an Al Jazeera cameraman killed in an Israeli strike. The report said the Israeli military asserted that Ahmed had been part of Hamas’ military wing and had posed a threat to troops in the area.

Al Jazeera has denied Israel’s claims about Ahmed, according to NBC News, and condemned his killing, calling it an attempt by Israel to silence and intimidate journalists. NBC also reported that a source close to Hamas told the Committee to Protect Journalists that Ahmed had no affiliation with the organization.

Prominent anti-Israel figures, including New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, portrayed Ahmed as a journalist killed by Israel while criticizing the IDF.

“More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military since the so-called ceasefire,” Mamdani said Monday. “Even an Al Jazeera journalist, Ahmed Washah, was killed this past Saturday by an Israeli strike.” Mamdani did not mention the IDF’s claim that Washah was a Hamas operative.

The IDF’s claim does not erase reports that Ahmed worked for Al Jazeera. But those reports also do not erase the IDF’s claim that he served in Hamas’ military wing and had recently advanced sniper attack plans against Israeli troops.

Since the first reports described Ahmed as a journalist without including Israel’s claim that he was also a Hamas sniper, many readers were left with a narrow version of the story. Israel’s account presents a very different version of the strike than the one circulating online.