Were a majority of the Gazan journalists killed since October 7th, 2023 linked to terrorist organizations?

This is a genuinely contested claim, with sharply different findings depending on the source.

The claim's origin: The "majority linked to terrorism" claim comes from a study by Israel's Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, published in December 2025. That study examined the identities of 266 individuals identified as journalists or media workers killed in Gaza between October 7, 2023, and November 30, 2025, and concluded that at least 157 of them — roughly 60 percent — were members of terror groups or clearly affiliated with them, including 104 linked to Hamas and 45 to Islamic Jihad. The center said its conclusions are based on public records, Palestinian media reports, and Hamas documents seized by the Israel Defense Forces during ground operations in Gaza. The IDF separately released its own list, stating "Following an extensive research effort, the IDF is now revealing that 170 Gazans who were killed during the war and presented as journalists and media personnel actually served as terrorists in terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip, primarily Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad".

Independent press-freedom groups dispute this. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the main international body tracking these deaths, found something very different. After reviewing its database in light of Hamas/PIJ obituaries, CPJ reported that it had removed eight names from its Killed database because they were later established to have been Hamas or PIJ combatants, and a further 12 individuals were removed for other reasons, bringing the total to 209 journalists documented as killed by Israel — meaning CPJ itself found only about 8 out of roughly 230+ names (under 4%) warranted removal for combatant status, not 60%. CPJ's leadership stressed its standard: "CPJ has always been clear that we do not include anyone in our data sets if there is evidence that they were engaging in combat or inciting imminent violence... This is consistent with international humanitarian law, which considers journalists affiliated with non-state actors to be civilians, provided they do not directly participate in hostilities."

Bottom line: No, this is not an established fact — it's a disputed, politically charged claim. The "majority were terrorists" figure originates exclusively from an Israeli government-linked research center and the IDF itself, not from independent verification. The leading independent journalist-safety organization (CPJ), after specifically reviewing this exact allegation, found the vast majority of those killed did not meet the standard for combatant status and removed only a small fraction of names on those grounds. Overall, Israel has killed more journalists and media workers than any other government since CPJ began collecting data in 1992, with more press members dying in this conflict than in any other war CPJ has documented. The two sides disagree not just on the facts but on methodology — the IDF/Meir Amit study relies heavily on material it says was seized from Hamas or produced by the groups themselves, while CPJ applies international humanitarian law standards requiring evidence of direct participation in hostilities before classifying someone as a combatant rather than a civilian journalist.