Three journalists were assassinated by Israeli military forces in the city of Al-Zahraa in central Gaza on Wednesday. In a separate incident, Palestine TV journalist, Ali Dar Alie, was arrested by the Israeli military in the West Bank after being summoned for an interview. 

According to the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate, the 3 journalists killed were targeted in a direct strike on their vehicle.

In a statement, the syndicate said the 3 scribes were documenting the suffering of civilians in displacement camps, alleging that such attacks are part of a systematic Israeli policy aimed at silencing the Palestinian voice, obstructing the transmission of facts, and concealing crimes committed against civilians in the Gaza Strip.

The syndicate said the direct bombing of the journalists' vehicle constitutes a war crime and a crime against humanity under international humanitarian law, and represents a grave violation of the Geneva Conventions and United Nations resolutions guaranteeing the protection of journalists during armed conflicts.

It held Israel fully and directly responsible for the 'crime,' noting that a longstanding policy of impunity has encouraged continued attacks on journalists. It added that hundreds of journalists have been killed since the start of hostilities in 2023, making it one of the deadliest periods for journalism in modern history.

The syndicate called on the International Criminal Court to open urgent and serious investigations and to issue arrest warrants against those responsible for killing journalists. 

It also urged the United Nations, the Human Rights Council, and relevant international institutions to take concrete measures beyond statements of condemnation and to work toward providing immediate international protection for Palestinian journalists.

The journalists who died Wednesday were named as Abdul Raouf Shaath, Mohammad Salah Qeshta, and Anas Ghunaim.

They were among 11 people killed by Israeli forces on Wednesday, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

The IDF said it attacked "a number of suspects who operated a drone associated with the 'Hamas terrorist organisation' in the central Gaza Strip, in an area that threatened the forces. The Israeli military said the incident is under review.

According to Palestinian medics, a 10-year-old boy was one of three people killed in Israeli tank shelling east of Deir Al Balah in central Gaza on Wednesday. Another boy, aged thirteen, and a woman were killed by Israeli gunfire in two separate incidents in eastern Khan Younis in Gaza's south, medics told Reuters.

Three other Palestinians were killed in other shootings across the coastal enclave, taking Wednesday's death toll to at least 11, the Gaza Health Ministry said.

The ceasefire, brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump in early October last year, saw Israeli troops evacuate parts of the Gaza Strip; however, they still occupy more than half the enclave. The ceasefire, largely observed by Hamas, has been repeatedly violated by Israel, according to Palestinian sources and humanitarian agencies. Humanitarian aid is still only dribbling into Gaza, despite the ceasefire, which mandated a significant expansion and ramping up of trucks being allowed into the strip

Hamas met its major obligation under the ceasefire by returning all but one of the hostages. The body of the remaining hostage has not been relocated despite an extensive search carried out by Hamas, with the assistance of the IDF.

Israel says the second phase of the ceasefire can proceed only after Hamas hands over the remains of the last hostage.

Wafa reported Hamas's Gaza spokesman Hazem Qassem as saying the group had shared all information it had on the body of the last hostage and searched for it but in vain, blaming what it called Israeli army obstruction.

More than 470 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks since the ceasefire began on October 10, according to the Gaza health ministry. Israel says three of its soldiers have been killed by militants in the same period.

Israel launched its air and ground war in Gaza after a Hamas-led cross-border attack on October 7, 2023 that killed about 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's assault on Gaza has killed more than 71,000 Palestinians, local health authorities say. The death toll includes more than 250 journalists and media workers, according to the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate.