Freelance journalist Mahmoud Issa Abu Shirby, 34, was killed on June 25, 2025, in a drone strike near the house where his family had taken shelter in the port area of western Gaza City.
Abu Shirby had worked for the Qatari-funded broadcaster Al-Araby TV and Palestine Today before he was severely injured in an earlier Israeli airstrike on Gaza in September 12, 2024.
The attack led to the amputation of his left leg, fractures to his right leg, and loss of vision in his left eye, forcing him to stop working regularly, according to his brother Ahmed Issa Abu Shirby.
Despite his injuries, Mahmoud continued to post updates about the war on his Telegram channel, which had more than 90,000 followers, up to 15 minutes before his death.
On June 25th, “He went out as usual to sit in front of the house,” his brother told CPJ. “An Israeli drone fired a single missile directly at him around 9:45 a.m., killing him instantly.”
CPJ emailed the IDF’s North America Media Desk to request comment on Abu Shirby’s killing. In an exchange that followed, the IDF asked CPJ for the “coordinates and exact time” of the attack, which CPJ explained it could not provide. The IDF then said it could not fully address CPJ’s inquiry due to a lack of "necessary details."
In June 2026, CPJ undertook a review of its documentation of journalists and media workers killed in the Israel-Gaza war since 2023, and examined online claims alleging that Abu Shirby was a combatant.
As part of that review, that included desk research, CPJ identified an obituary published by Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) on Telegram in July 2026 that described Abu Shirby as leader of the group "Information Unit.” The obituary did not specify when Abu Shirby’s alleged affiliation or activity with the group occurred, nor did it claim that he was carrying out a militant role at the time of his death.
According to two independent sources that knew Abu Shirby, as well as his wife, he worked as a journalist throughout the latest war in Gaza.
His family said the journalist did not leave his house due to his injury, categorically denying the involvement of Abu Shirby in any information gathering or combat-related activities with armed groups.
Based on the available evidence, CPJ was unable to determine that Abu Shirby was an active combatant, and therefore qualified as a journalist under the organization’s methodology, and has retained him in its database.
This determination reflects the evidence available to CPJ at the time of its verification process; CPJ continues to review its documentation when credible new information emerges and updates its records where warranted.