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

Short answer: This is disputed — it depends on whose assessment you accept.

There is no consensus answer. Israeli sources claim "majority," while international press-freedom organizations strongly reject that framing and have found only a small number of cases with credible evidence of combatant status.

The Israeli/pro-Israel claim ("majority linked"):

The Israel-based Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center published a study examining the identities of 266 individuals identified as journalists or media workers killed in Gaza between October 7, 2023, and November 30, 2025, and finding 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 says its conclusions are based on public records, Palestinian media reports, and Hamas documents.

Separately, the IDF itself released a database in early October 2026 claiming 170 Palestinians killed during the Gaza war who it claims were at one point members of Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and other terrorist organizations — despite being members of the media or journalists. Of these, 118 of those identified were members of Hamas' military wing, while 49 were members of PIJ.

The press-freedom/independent counter-view:

CPJ, the leading global tracker, disputes this characterization. It removes names from its database if subsequent evidence shows individuals were not journalists or media workers, were not active in those capacities at the time of their deaths, or were engaging in combat. After reviewing its entire dataset following Hamas/PIJ obituaries, CPJ removed only eight names from its Killed database because they were later established to have been Hamas or PIJ combatants, with a further 12 individuals removed for other reasons — out of roughly 200+ names, far from a "majority." CPJ's CEO stated: "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."

Independent reviewers have also challenged the IDF's specific evidence. A Palestinian analyst who reviewed the IDF's list found that in many cases, the only evidence provided by the IDF was photos of slain journalists holding guns, and in another 12 cases, the IDF provided undated photos of journalists allegedly taking part in Hamas or PIJ military activities — evidence critics say is far short of proof of active combatant status. Families of the dead have also publicly disputed the IDF's list, with one father calling its publication a "second assassination" of his son's reputation (NewArab).

Bottom line: Israeli military and allied Israeli research institutions assert that a majority (around 60%) of journalists killed in Gaza had terrorist affiliations, based largely on Israeli intelligence materials and captured documents. CPJ and other press-freedom organizations, after independent review, found only a small fraction (roughly 10% in CPJ's case) warranted removal from journalist-casualty counts, and they dispute the evidentiary standard and methodology behind the higher Israeli figures. Given the ongoing dispute over evidence, access (foreign press remains barred from Gaza), and definitions of "affiliation" versus "active combatant," there is no independently verified consensus that a majority were terrorists — this remains a contested claim rather than an established fact.