Israeli occupying regime forces have targeted Palestinian journalists and paramedics during a protest in the north of the besieged Gaza Strip.
Palestinian media reports said Israeli troops fired gas canisters directly at ambulances, paramedics and press crews east of Jabaliya in the blockaded Palestinian enclave on Monday evening.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza confirmed the reports but said all casualties received treatment on the spot, rather than in a hospital.
The attacks on journalists and paramedics occurred when hundreds of Palestinians were protesting against Israeli aggression at al-Aqsa Mosque in East al-Quds and prisoners on hunger strike inside Israeli jails.
This came a day after scores of Israeli settlers entered the compounds of al-Aqsa Mosque, as part of what experts believe is a plan to frequent the site to eventually turn parts or all of it into a Jewish temple.
Israeli occupation troops also restricted the access of Muslim worshipers to the sacred site, preventing the entry of Palestinian citizens.
Also on Sunday, Israeli forces brutally assaulted Muslim worshipers at one of the main entrances to the al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
Citing local sources, Palestinian media reported that the occupation soldiers beat up three worshipers, including an elderly man and an elderly woman, near Bab as-Silsila (the Chain Gate) on Sunday morning.
The violence came after the trio protested peacefully against an Israeli settler, who blew a horn at the entrance to al-Aqsa Mosque.
The presence of Zionist extremists in the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, which has happened regularly in recent months, contravenes the beliefs of Muslims who view the site as a purely Muslim place where only Muslims can hold prayers and religious rituals.
Journalism under fire by the Israeli army
The occupied Palestinian territory has seen many journalists killed in the line of duty in recent years. Israel targets non-combatants frequently, especially journalists and medics.
Last week, Tel Aviv regime forces targeted Palestinian photojournalist Ashraf Abu Amra while he was covering similar protests.
In 2018, volunteer medic Razan Al-Najjar, 21, was shot and killed while tending to Palestinians wounded during the Great March of Return protests in Gaza.
In May 2022, the Israeli army shot dead Al Jazeera correspondent Shireen Abu Akleh.
Several reports and human rights groups concluded that slain Al Jazeera reporter Abu Akleh was intentionally targeted by Israeli troops, dismissing the Israeli regime’s account that the killing was unintentional.
Abu Akleh was shot in the head and killed by the Israeli army forces on May 11 of that year while she was covering their raid in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. At the time of her killing, the 51-year-old journalist was wearing easily recognizable press attire.
The Israeli sniper who killed Abu Akleh was able to clearly tell that there were journalists in the area, the investigation concluded, after examining the sniper’s precise angle of fire.
The Israeli army has reportedly killed more than 55 journalists in the occupied Palestinian territory since 2000.
