Headline Roundup • August 27th, 2025
AP and Reuters ‘Outraged’ Over Journalists Killed by Israel Airstrike, Demand ‘Clear Explanation’
Summary from the AllSides News Team
After an Israeli strike on a Gaza hospital killed five journalists who previously worked for Reuters (Center bias), The Associated Press (Left), Al Jazeera (Lean Left), Middle East Eye (Left), and others, Reuters and AP have issued a joint letter to the Israeli government, demanding a “clear explanation.”
Key Quotes: The outlets said they were “outraged” and that the journalists’ work “is especially vital in light of Israel’s nearly two-year ban on foreign journalists entering Gaza.” It added, “In a statement, the IDF said it ‘does not target journalists as such.’ Unfortunately, we have found the IDF's willingness and ability to investigate itself in past incidents to rarely result in clarity and action, raising serious questions including whether Israel is deliberately targeting live feeds in order to suppress information.”
For Context: After the strike, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was a “tragic mishap” that would be investigated. One of the journalists killed was under contract with Reuters, and another contractor was wounded. On August 10, Israel killed five Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza, claiming one was a Hamas member. On July 24, Reuters, AP, AFP, and BBC (Center) issued a joint statement to the Israeli government over concerns that their journalists were facing starvation. According to the American nonprofit Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), 192 journalists have been killed in the Gaza war so far.
Initial Media Coverage: The original strike was covered widely by mainstream media, though the joint letter from AP and Reuters was not widely covered. Some Lean Left outlets, such as The New York Times, CNN, and CBC, mentioned the letter in coverage. AllSides intitially did not find coverage or mentions of the letter from the Right or Center.
Later Coverage: Later on Tuesday, The Wrap (Center) and Axios (Lean Left) authored original coverage of the story. Reuters said a spokesperson told it the two Reuters and AP journalists were not "a target of the strike." CNN (Lean Left) and CBS News (Lean Left) reported that Israel said it had targeted a camera being used by Hamas.
Editor's Note: Updated Aug. 27, 5 a.m. ET to include most recent Israeli statements and new coverage.
Written by the AllSides staff (of humans). Learn more. Support our mission.
Featured Coverage of this Story
Reuters and the Associated Press have sent a joint letter to Israeli officials demanding a "clear explanation" for double-tap air strikes that killed five journalists at a hospital in Gaza on Monday.
"We are outraged that independent journalists were among the victims of this strike on the hospital, a location that is protected under international law. These journalists were present in their professional capacity, doing critical work bearing witness," the letter read.
Abed Rahim Khatib/Anadolu via Getty Images
Reuters and the Associated Press issued a joint letter to Israel’s government on Monday night, demanding answers over an Israeli airstrike on a hospital in Gaza that led to the death of 20 people, among them five journalists, including Mariam Dagga and Moaz Abu Taha, who had both worked for AP and Reuters and cameraman Hussam al-Masri, who was a contractor with Reuters.
Reuters and the Associated Press today sent the following letter to Israeli officials regarding the airstrikes in Gaza that killed five journalists:
Dear Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz, Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, Foreign Minister Gideon Saar and Director of the Government Press Office Nitzan Chen:
We are writing to demand a clear explanation for the airstrikes that hit Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis on Aug. 25, 2025, killing several journalists, including those working for the Associated Press and Reuters. Freelance visual...
