Al Jazeera journalist with alleged ties to Hamas wounded in IDF Gaza strike
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFFEBRUARY 15, 2024 09:42 An employee working inside the office of Qatar-based Al-Jazeera network in Jerusalem(photo credit: AMMAR AWAD/REUTERS)
Ismail Abu Omar, dual role bearer as an Al-Jazeera reporter and alleged Hamas commander, was injured following an Israeli drone strike near Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.
Reports emerged from Al Jazeera on Tuesday confirming that one of their correspondents had sustained injuries during an IDF strike in the southern Gaza Strip. Identified as Ismail Abu Omar by Al-Jazeera, he holds the position of deputy company commander within Hamas’s Eastern Battalion of Khan Yunis, according to the IDF.
Abu Omar, along with another photographer named Ahmad Matar, were reporting for Al-Jazeera north of Rafah when they were struck by a drone deployed by the IDF.
In a statement released on X, Al-Jazeera English disclosed that Abu Omar had been severely wounded in an Israeli drone attack on Tuesday. They shared a photograph of Abu Omar in the hospital, who later underwent a leg amputation. Alongside this, they conveyed his message, "Israeli aggression will not quash journalistic endeavors in the Gaza Strip."
Al Jazeera’s Ismail Abu Omar, who was severely injured in an Israeli drone attack on Tuesday, had a defiant message: Israeli violence will not deter journalism in the Gaza Strip. LIVE updates: https://t.co/MQdyIUvTbXpic.twitter.com/Cm60e4sZ1b
Yosi Shnaider, a cousin of Shiri Bibas, who was taken hostage, along with her children Kfir, 9 months old when taken, Ariel, 4, and her husband Yarden by Palestinian Islamist group Hamas during the deadly October 7 attack, visits the family house in kibbutz Nir Oz, Israel (credit: AMIR COHEN/REUTERS)Abu Omar’s involvement on October 7
According to IDF sources, Abu Omar serves as the deputy commander within Hamas’s Eastern Battalion of Khan Yunis. Notably, he was present at Kibbutz Nir Oz during the Hamas infiltration into southern Israel on October 7. Eyewitnesses spotted him alongside Hamas terrorists within Israeli territory, as well as his own footage filmed and uploaded to social media within the premises of the kibbutz on that fateful day.
Abu Omar is not the sole instance of an Al Jazeera correspondent allegedly maintaining ties to Hamas and other militant factions. A previous article by The Jerusalem Post reported on journalist Muhammed Wishah's affiliation with Hamas, where he purportedly held a leadership role within Hamas’s anti-tank missile units. These revelations surfaced following the IDF's seizure of laptops in northern Gaza, shedding light on the intricate nexus between journalism and militant activities in the region.Israel's Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan wrote on X that, " terrorist Ismail Abu Omar may be employed by Al Jazeera as a “journalist”, but he also invaded Israel on October 7th and praised the massacre, filming himself in Kibbutz Nir Oz, while publishing it on social media.
The terrorist Ismail Abu Omar may be employed by Al Jazeera as a “journalist”, but he also invaded Israel on October 7th and praised the massacre, filming himself in Kibbutz Nir Oz, while publishing it on social media.Listen to him cheering the brutal murder of Israelis in cold… pic.twitter.com/Gknub6iyj2
