Hossam Shabat, a 23-year-old journalist, from Gaza, was killed on Monday in Israeli airstrikes.
Mohammad Mansour, who worked for Palestine Today, has also been killed in a separate Israeli attack.
Hossam Shabat was killed in an Israeli airstrike in northern Gaza and was working for Al-Jazeera Mubasher.
Reporting from Deir-al-Balah in central Gaza, Al Jazeera journalist, Tareq Abu Azzoum said, Shabat was previously injured in another Israeli airstrike “but he insisted on continuing news reporting” in Gaza. “The Israeli military targeted his vehicle” without giving “any prior warning”, Abu Azzoum said.
His colleagues shared his heart-wrenching final message. In a post on X, prewritten by Shabat, he wrote, “If you’re reading this, it means I have been killed — most likely targeted — by the Israeli occupation forces.”
He narrated his ordeal while carrying out his journalistic duties for the past 18 months amid tough and precarious conditions.
“When this all began, I was only 21 years old—a college student with dreams like anyone else. For past 18 months, I have dedicated every moment of my life to my people. I documented the horrors in northern Gaza minute by minute, determined to show the world the truth they tried to bury. I slept on pavements, in schools, in tents—anywhere I could. Each day was a battle for survival.”
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“I endured hunger for months, yet I never left my people’s side. By God, I fulfilled my duty as a journalist. I risked everything to report the truth, and now, I am finally at rest—something I haven’t known in the past 18 months. I did all this because I believe in the Palestinian cause. I believe this land is ours, and it has been the highest honor of my life to die defending it and serving its people.”
“I ask you now: do not stop speaking about Gaza. Do not let the world look away. Keep fighting, keep telling our stories—until Palestine is free.” — For the last time, Hossam Shabat, from northern Gaza,” he concluded his message.