Clan Kills Prominent Journalist

Armed Clan Kills Prominent Journalist

Journalist Saleh Al-Jafarawi has been confirmed killed after his body was brought to Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City. He was reportedly shot dead by members of the Doghmush clan, an armed group long at odds with Hamas.

➤ Heavy clashes broke out in Gaza City between the clan and security forces late Sunday night. A senior source in Gaza’s Ministry of Interior told Al Jazeera the fighting involved “armed militias affiliated with the occupation,” who also killed displaced civilians returning from the south.

➤ The source said security forces have surrounded the gunmen inside Gaza City and are working to arrest them, vowing to restore order and hold those responsible accountable.

➤ Al-Jafarawi had long been targeted by Israeli military channels, which incited against him for documenting Israel’s war crimes and Palestinian suffering — branding him a “Hamas propagandist.”

➤ Local police and Hamas fighters exchanged fire with the clan, which earlier this week kidnapped and killed a prominent resistance member. Hamas accuses Doghmush members of stealing aid, seizing resistance weapons, and collaborating with Israel. The clan, however, has previously declared its opposition to Hamas but denied working with Israel.

As Palestinian analyst Muhammad Shehada notes, the Doghmush clan is not a single political entity. While an armed faction within this clan has been accused of killing a Qassam fighter and journalist Saleh Al-Jafarawi, and has been clashing with security forces and Hamas fighters, the clan itself includes a wide range of affiliations.

“The Dogmoush clan is not a monolith. Some are affiliated with Hamas or Fatah; some are politically independent; some are academics; some are affiliated with ISIS (Jaysh al-Islam) & were responsible for the kidnapping of BBC journalist Alan Johnston in 2007; some have formed gangs that were looting aid systematically in Northern Gaza; some have been collaborating with Israel.”