Ahmad Qalaja
أحمد قلجة

Killed by Israel on 6 Jun 2025

Links

• Ahmad Qalaja Freelance
• Palestine Today mourns its two martyred journalists, Suleiman Hajjaj and Ismail Badah.

Archivist Notes

Killed after succumbing to wounds sustained in an Israeli drone airstrike that targeted him and a group of journalists in the courtyard of Al-Ahli Arab (Baptist) Hospital in Gaza City.

On the spot, the Israeli strike had initially killed 3 journalists and wounded two others, including Ahmad Qalaja.


Three other journalists were injured in the attack: Emad Daloul, a correspondent for Palestine Today TV, and brothers Islam and Imam Badr, who were reporting and filming for Al-Araby TV. Witnesses said the group had been working on their laptops in the courtyard when the missile struck. Video footage reviewed by CPJ confirmed Qalaja was hit while seated in his work area.

Qalaja had recently graduated in journalism and media from Al-Azhar University in Gaza and had begun working as a cameraman at the start of the war. His father, himself a media professional, said he had encouraged his son’s passion for journalism.

The Israel Defense Forces stated the strike was a “precise” attack on an Islamic Jihad operative operating from a command center in the hospital courtyard. IDF spokesperson Avichay Adraee later claimed that Hajjaj and Al-Rifai were Islamic Jihad members “masquerading as journalists,” but provided no evidence.

Palestine Today TV condemned the attack as a “double war crime,” arguing that it involved the direct targeting of both journalists and a hospital, which are protected under international law. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) sought further comment from the IDF but received no response.