Venezuela Condemns ‘Vile Murder’ of Al Jazeera Journalists, Rejects Israel’s Gaza Occupation Plan

Caracas, August 12, 2025 (venezuelanalysis.com) – The Venezuelan government strongly condemned the “vile and premeditated murder” of five Al Jazeera media workers in a targeted Israeli airstrike in Gaza, as Tel Aviv plans to occupy the besieged enclave.

Al Jazeera correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqeh, along with their crew members Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa, were killed in a deliberate Israeli strike on their tent near al-Shifa hospital late on Sunday. Freelance reporter Mohammed al-Khali was also killed in the attack.

In a communique released on Monday, Caracas described the journalists’ assassination as a “war crime” and part of Israel’s “systematic strategy to silence the press and hide its crimes.” It added that Israel “flagrantly violates international humanitarian law and the norms that protect journalists in conflict zones.”

The Nicolás Maduro government expressed solidarity with the families and colleagues of the murdered journalists and reiterated its “unwavering support” for the Palestinian cause. It also urged the international community to “act decisively” to halt Israel’s actions.

On Monday, the Venezuelan Solidarity Movement with Palestine Al Awda held a rally in front of the United Nations (UN) headquarters in Caracas, demanding the expulsion of Israel from the multilateral body for its war crimes.

“For every voice they [Israel] try to silence, there will be more voices from the solidarity movement. The global action for Palestine is growing every day; Zionism is destroying humanity, and we will not allow it,” activist Roxana Laguado told the press.

Since October 2023, Israel has killed nearly 270 journalists and media personnel in Gaza. In the first year of the genocide, the Palestinian Journalists’ Union recorded 357 media workers injured, two forcibly disappeared and 16 detained by Israeli occupation forces. 

In addition, Israeli airstrikes have destroyed 73 media institutions in Gaza and another 15 media outlets have been forced to close in the West Bank.

Likewise, Israel killed at least 55 media workers in the occupied Palestinian territories between 2000 and 2022. One high-profile case was that of veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was fatally shot in the head by Israeli forces in Jenin, in the occupied West Bank, in May 2022.

Israel has never been held accountable for targeting journalists or for its smear campaign against the Palestinian press, which it has often accused of being “terrorist” operatives without evidence.

Last week, Venezuela also joined the global condemnation of the Israeli government’s plan to invade and occupy Gaza. In a statement released on Friday, Caracas denounced the occupation as yet another escalation following two years of genocide and 77 years of “barbarism by the Zionist occupation”.

“This occupation plan aims to erase the very existence of the Palestinian people and is intolerable to humanity’s conscience,” read the text.

The Maduro government urged recognizing Palestine as a full UN member with East Jerusalem as its capital, restoring its 1967 borders, and ensuring the safe return of all Palestinians.

Since October 2023, Israeli forces have killed over 60,000 Palestinians and displaced millions during their relentless bombing of Gaza. Entire communities have been razed and essential infrastructure, as well as cultural and historical landmarks, have been destroyed.

According to Gaza health officials, more than 200 people have recently starved to death due to inadequate and insufficient humanitarian aid provision. They have denounced Tel Aviv for engineering starvation through a near-total blockade of the enclave. Occupation forces have likewise killed hundreds of Palestinians in food distribution operations.

The World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that 500,000 people in Gaza are on the brink of famine.

Venezuela, which broke diplomatic ties with Tel Aviv in 2009, has repeatedly condemned the obstruction of international humanitarian efforts and supports South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). 

Edited by Cira Pascual Marquina in Caracas.