By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Al Jazeera’s Gaza bureau chief, Wael Dahdouh, has lost his eldest son, Hamza Dahdouh in an Israeli missile strike in the western part of Khan Younis, Gaza, the media agency reports.
Hamza, 27, was a journalist like his father.
Hamza had in October last year lost his mother Amna, brother Mahmoud, 15, sister Sham, 7, and nephew Adam, 1. They were killed in an Israeli attack.
His grief after their loss seemed to motivate him to work harder on covering the war on Gaza, according to his colleague.
Along with Hamza, Journalist Mustafa Thuraya who is in his 20s was also killed in the attack, when the vehicle they were travelling in near al-Mawasi, towards the southwest, was struck by the missile.
According to Al Jazeera, a third passenger, Hazem Rajab, was seriously injured.
Hamza and Mustafa’s vehicle was targeted as they were trying to interview civilians displaced by previous bombings, Al Jazeera reporters say.
Speaking from the cemetery where his son had been laid to rest, the bureau chief Wael who seemed subdued by emotion said he was one of the droves of people in Gaza today who are bidding bitter farewells to their loved ones every day.
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He vowed to remain on his path of showing the world what is happening in Gaza, despite the pain of one loss after another.
“Hamza was everything to me, the eldest boy, he was the soul of my soul… these are the tears of parting and loss, the tears of humanity,” he said.
The Al Jazeera Media Network has condemned the attack, saying: “The assassination of Mustafa and Hamza … whilst they were on their way to carry out their duty in the Gaza Strip, reaffirms the need to take immediate necessary legal measures against the occupation forces to ensure that there is no impunity.”
Reacting to the news, Gaza’s media office condemned the killing of the two journalists, denouncing “in the strongest terms this heinous crime”.
Hamza was extremely attached to his family and was devastated when he heard on October 25 that an Israeli raid had hit the house his family was sheltering at in the Nuseirat refugee camp, Al Jazeera says.
