Israel’s air force on Saturday attacked a tower block in Gaza housing the offices of the Associated Press (AP) and Al Jazeera. The airstrikes came six days into renewed conflict between Israe…
The airstrikes came six days into renewed conflict between Israel and Hamas. They took place roughly an hour after Israeli military ordered an evacuation of the Al-Jalaa tower building, which housed the outlets’ bureaus as well as other apartments.
AP occupied the top-floor office of Al-Jalaa for 15 years. The hub, which included a roof terrace, was a “prime location for covering Israel’s conflicts with Gaza’s Hamas rulers, including wars in 2009 and 2014.” The agency reports that its camera offered “24-hour live shots as militants’ rockets arched toward Israel and Israeli airstrikes hammered the city and its surrounding area this week.”
“We are seeking information from the Israeli government and are engaged with the U.S. State Department to try to learn more. This is an incredibly disturbing development. We narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life. A dozen AP journalists and freelancers were inside the building and thankfully we were able to evacuate them in time. The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today.
“Al Jazeera promises to pursue every available route to hold the Israeli government responsible for its actions,” reads a statement.