“Al Jazeera journalist Anas al-Sharif has been killed alongside three colleagues in what appears to be a targeted Israeli attack, the director of the al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City has said,” the Qatar-based broadcaster said.

“Al-Sharif, 28, was killed on Sunday after a tent for journalists outside the main gate of the hospital was hit. The well-known Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent reportedly extensively from northern Gaza.”

The Israeli military confirmed that it had targeted the journalists, saying it had struck an Al Jazeera’s Al-Sharif, calling him a “terrorist” who “posed as a journalist”.

“A short while ago, in Gaza City, the IDF struck the terrorist Anas Al-Sharif, who posed as a journalist for the Al Jazeera network. Anas Al-Sharif served as the head of a terrorist cell in the Hamas terrorist organisation and was responsible for advancing rocket attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF troops,” the military said on Telegram.

Al-Sharif was one of the channel’s most recognisable on faces working on the ground in Gaza, providing daily reports in regular coverage.

Israel and Al Jazeera have had a contentious relationship for years, with Israeli authorities banning the channel in the country and raiding its offices following the latest war in Gaza.