Al Jazeera has dismissed 24 journalists and other staff members who worked for the network in Gaza, amid a lawsuit in the United States alleging that some of its employees had links to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ).
The lawsuit was filed in February 2025 by the civil rights organisation Shurat HaDin, with support from the pro-Israel advocacy group StandWithUs. It names several Al Jazeera employees and alleges that some had connections to, or membership in, the two organisations.
The development followed a review by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), which said in June that it had removed 20 individuals from its database after confirming that they had worked for Hamas or PIJ.
The review came after Israeli media reports identified people who had previously been listed as journalists by international media organisations as having alleged connections to the groups.
CPJ said it does not list individuals as journalists or media workers when there is evidence that they were participating in combat or directly inciting imminent violence. The organisation noted that affiliation with a non-state group does not, by itself, mean a person is considered a combatant under international humanitarian law.
The committee said its verification process relies on multiple independent sources, desk research and, where possible, direct reporting. However, it said its researchers have been unable to conduct in-person verification in Gaza since the war began because international journalists have not been allowed general access to the territory.
CPJ has continued to call for foreign journalists to be granted access to Gaza and has petitioned Israeli authorities and the Supreme Court over the restrictions.
The organisation said it was conducting a broader review of the individuals on its lists to ensure that anyone who had actively participated in hostilities was not being identified as a journalist or media worker.
