World
Gaza journalists mourn Al Jazeera’s Wishah, killed by Israel
Gaza City, Gaza Strip – Just hours before his assassination, Mohammed Wishah, a correspondent for Al Jazeera Mubasher, was sitting with his fellow journalists in a tent near al-Shifa Hospital in central Gaza City.
The gathering on Wednesday was typical, bringing together colleagues who had become friends after working closely together for more than two years covering Israel’s genocidal war that had destroyed so much around them.
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None of them knew it would be their last meeting.
As Wishah was driving his car south, heading back to his home in Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, and along the al-Rashid coastal road, an Israeli drone fired a missile that directly struck his car.
Wishah was declared dead immediately; the vehicle had caught fire and turned into a mass of flames on the roadside.
Wishah’s killing came as a major shock to his fellow journalists in Gaza, who rushed to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza’s Deir el-Balah to bid him farewell and take part in his funeral.
During the funeral, which set off on Thursday morning from the hospital, dozens of journalists gathered to mourn Wishah alongside his family and relatives. A deep sorrow hung over the mourners, as well as an intense anger over the repeated targeting of journalists in Gaza.
Wishah was born in 1986 in Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. He studied, graduated, and worked as a journalist, then joined Al Jazeera Mubasher – Al Jazeera’s Arabic-language live television network – in 2018, where he remained until he was assassinated.
Talal al-Arouqi, a fellow correspondent with Al Jazeera Mubasher, said that he was extremely sad to lose Wishah as a colleague, as well as a friend.
“Mohammed was like a spiritual father to us here during the war in the Gaza Strip,” al-Arouqi told Al Jazeera. “We used to turn to him for every detail of the work and coverage.”
“We consulted him on everything, big and small, because he was sincere and kind. He was a colleague, a brother, a friend, and someone loved by everyone,” he added. “Everyone here loved Mohammed. Everyone here cried in grief and heartbreak over him. Everyone was devastated and shocked by the news of his killing.”
Al-Arouqi said that he believed Israel had deliberately targeted Wishah following an incitement campaign against him, similar to the ones that had taken place against fellow Al Jazeera journalists Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqeh before their killings, accusing them without basis of being members of Hamas.
Because of the incitement campaign by the Israeli army against Wishah, he was forced – during his war coverage – to stay away from his home and family, in addition to facing intense work pressure.
He would sleep in tents with other journalists and work long hours throughout the day. And he would have known the risks of working as a journalist in Gaza: authorities in the Palestinian enclave say that 262 media workers have been killed by Israel since the start of the war in October 2023.
Abdullah Miqdad, a correspondent for Al Araby TV in Gaza, was one of those who knew Wishah. He said Israel needs to be held accountable.
“These operations targeting journalists in Gaza would not have continued were it not for the absence of legal accountability and prosecution of Israel,” Miqdad said. “Today, we lost Mohammed Wishah. And he will not be the last.”
Miqdad called for international institutions to offer real protection for Palestinian journalists, in line with international humanitarian law, which guarantees the protection of journalists in conflict zones.
“Mohammed and other journalists are supposed to be protected under this law,” he said, “and there should be real action to protect them and prevent their targeting or harm under any circumstances.”
![Mohammed Wishah’s family bids him a final farewell before his burial at Al-Aqsa [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/ Al Jazeera]](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==)
Al Jazeera journalists targeted
For Al Jazeera’s team in Gaza, Wishah’s death was the latest in a long line of tragedies.
Wishah is the 12th Al Jazeera journalist or media worker in Gaza to have been killed by Israeli forces since the start of the war. The others are Samer Abu Daqqa, Hamza al-Dahdouh, Ismail al-Ghoul, Ahmed al-Louh, Rami al-Rifi, Anas al-Sharif, Ibrahim al-Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, Muhammad Qreiqeh, Muhammad Salama, and Hussam Shabat.
Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza organised a press vigil in front of the Al Jazeera tent near al-Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza City, condemning the killing of Wishah and other colleagues at the network.
Moamen al-Sharafi, a correspondent for Al Jazeera Arabic, eulogised Wishah’s long career, which included coverage of Israeli wars on Gaza, as well as repeated Israeli assaults, even as he endured the hardships of war, displacement, siege, and starvation.
“Mohammed’s banner has not fallen, nor that of his colleagues who came before him. It is the banner of truth that must continue,” al-Sharafi said.
“We affirm that assassinations and the liquidation of Palestinian journalists will not deter us from continuing this coverage, despite the risks and the extensive incitement campaigns led by the Israeli side and its forces against Palestinian journalists, especially those of Al Jazeera,” he added.
Hind Khoudary, a correspondent for Al Jazeera English, expressed her deep sorrow over Wishah’s loss, describing him as a “companion in the journey of displacement”.
“We worked together at al-Shifa Hospital at the beginning of the war, then after displacement, we moved to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, which became our place of displacement and our second home,” Khoudary said.
“There were many daily details I shared with Mohammed… Mohammed Wishah was like a spiritual father to female journalists, especially those without their families,” she said. “He always looked after us and tried to provide everything, even when there was no food.”
“The loss of Mohammed is a huge loss… he was a humane and professional journalist,” Khoudary added. “We still cannot believe he was targeted while there is said to be a ceasefire, even as the killing and targeting continue.”
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A record 274 climbers reached the summit of Mount Everest in a single day this week, as critics warn the world’s tallest peak is becoming dangerously overcrowded with thrill-seekers willing to pay $15,000 for a shot at the top.
The surge shattered the previous Nepali record of 223 climbers set in 2019, Rishi Bhandari, secretary general of the Expedition Operators Association of Nepal, told Reuters on Thursday.
“This is the highest number of climbers in a single day so far,” Bhandari said, adding that the final summit total could rise even further as some climbers had not yet officially reported their successful ascents.
Nepal has already issued 494 Everest climbing permits this season, each costing climbers $15,000.
EXTREME TRAVEL DESTINATION TO RESTRICT POPULAR MOUNTAIN ACCESS
Climbers walk in a long queue as they head to the summit of Mount Everest in the Solukhumbu district, Nepal, on May 18, 2026. (Purnima Shrestha/Reuters)
Climbers this year are ascending only from the Nepal side of Everest because China reportedly did not issue permits for expeditions from the Tibetan side.
Nepal has already issued 494 Everest climbing permits this season, each costing climbers $15,000. (Paula Bronstein/Getty Images)
Mountaineering experts have long criticized Nepal for allowing large numbers of climbers on Everest, warning that overcrowding can create life-threatening bottlenecks high on the mountain in Everest’s deadly “death zone,” where oxygen levels plunge to dangerously low levels.
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Mountaineers line up as they climb a slope during their ascent to the summit of Mount Everest in Nepal on May 31, 2021. (Lakpa Sherpa/AFP)
Nepal has attempted to respond to safety concerns in recent years by tightening rules and increasing fees for climbers, though some expedition leaders have defended the high number of climbers.
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“If teams carry enough oxygen it is not a big problem,” expedition organizer Lukas Furtenbach of the Austria-based Furtenbach Adventures told the outlet. “We have mountains in the Alps like the Zugspitze where we have 4,000 persons on top per day. So 274 is actually not a big number, considering this mountain is 10 times bigger.”
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s groundbreaking plan to grant Ukraine “associate membership” in the European Union has received mixed reviews in Brussels, with questions raised about its legality, feasibility and political implications.
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In a letter to his fellow leaders, seen by Euronews, Merz proposes a tailor-made status that would give Ukraine access to decision-making bodies without voting rights or portfolio and to certain EU-funded programmes on a “step-by-step” basis.
He also envisions Kyiv able to request assistance from other member states in the event of armed aggression through Article 42.7 of the EU treaties. This, he argues, would create a “substantial security guarantee” to deter Russia.
“It is now time to boldly move on with Ukraine’s EU integration through innovative solutions as immediate steps forward,” Merz tells his peers.
In Brussels, Merz’s letter drew attention and raised eyebrows amid ongoing efforts to lift Hungary’s veto on Ukraine’s accession by the time the 27 leaders meet in June.
His push was compared to the op-ed that the chancellor wrote last year endorsing the use of Russia’s immobilised assets to finance a so-called reparations loan to Ukraine. The op-ed shocked Brussels, and the audacious project eventually collapsed.
The letter is “a rather hasty statement, and not very well coordinated. The timing is strange, especially since in June we will have good news with the opening of the cluster, so this letter is a bit surprising,” said a diplomat, warning of widespread scepticism.
“We need to do things differently. There is indeed a timeline, with June in view, and there is a method. Things will move forward.”
A second diplomat cast serious doubt on Merz’s assertion that the “associate membership” would not require amending the EU treaties, just strong political will.
“I don’t see how this could work from a legal point of view. You would need to change the treaties for that. Associate members with all institutions by way of political arrangement? I don’t see it,” the diplomat said.
A third diplomat said that in the letter, “some ideas are better than others”, while a fourth noted the real debate among member states was yet to begin.
‘Merit-based’ focus
By contrast, the European Commission, which oversees the accession process, was more positive and welcomed Merz’s proposal as showing a “strong commitment from member states to make enlargement a reality as soon as possible”.
“It is increasingly clear that enlargement is a geostrategic investment in our prosperity, peace, and security. And Ukraine’s accession to the European Union is also fundamentally linked to the security of our union,” Guillaume Mercier, the Commission’s spokesperson for enlargement, said in a statement.
“It is equally important that we deliver on the completion of the Union with all the candidate countries that have been working towards accession for many years.”
Mercier noted that any innovative solution should be underpinned by the “merit-based” logic that is supposed to guide the complex multi-chapter accession process.
Earlier this year, the Commission pitched a “reversed” membership under which Ukraine would become a formal EU member and progressively obtain the tangible benefits that come with it. Capitals largely rebuffed the idea, calling it dangerous and unrealistic.
Merz’s pitch suggests gradual integration to access EU funds and high-level fora, but with formal membership only at the very end of the road.
The German letter comes as the bloc sees a window of opportunity to finally lift the Hungarian veto on Ukraine’s accession, which has left the process paralysed for two years. The new government in Budapest has launched consultations with Kyiv to discuss the rights of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine, a politically sensitive issue.
Brussels hopes that enough progress will be made to lift the veto in June and open the first cluster of negotiations with Ukraine, known as fundamentals, with the remaining five clusters unblocked across the remainder of the year.
It remains unclear how Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will react to Merz’s letter. Last month, he flat-out rejected any overture for “symbolic” membership.
“Ukraine is defending itself and is definitely defending Europe,” he said. “And it is not defending Europe symbolically – people are really dying.”
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