Mamdouh Qanita, a 42-year-old Palestinian journalist and editor for the Hamas-owned Al-Aqsa TV, was killed by a gunshot from an Israeli drone while he was inside the Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza City on the evening of November 30, 2024, according to multiple media reports.
Fellow journalist Khalil Abu Shaaban, who witnessed the incident and was standing next to him, told CPJ: “We were doing our usual work, following the events and developments on the ground in Gaza City, where we were in the courtyard of the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City, specifically in the area designated for journalists, when we were surprised by gunfire at a quarter to 5 in the evening on Saturday from an Israeli quadcopter drone, with a bullet directly penetrating Mamdouh’s head and exiting the other side.”
"We were not wearing press insignia because we were in a hospital and not a theater of military operations or friction with the occupation forces, and it is supposed to be safe,” he added.
CPJ emailed the Israel Defense Forces’ North America Media Desk asking whether the military knew civilians and journalists where in the areas it bombed and whether Qanita was targeted for his work but didn’t immediately receive a response.