Lies can thrive after shooting the messenger

IT is tough enough to do this job at the best of times.

- DARREN LEWIS

In this post-truth era of lies, disinformation and monetised hate, the courage and commitment of my journalistic colleagues around the world is even more heroic.

So it has been hard to witness the tears of those who worked directly with Gaza correspondent Anas al-Sharif, bombed by Israeli forces on Sunday night.

The 28-year-old father of two had established himself as a leading voice covering the bloodshed and the starvation of the Palestinian people on the ground.

On one occasion he wept openly, live on camera, as the skeletal children, the widespread hopelessness and a woman collapsing from hunger behind him all became too much.

Al-Sharif had been one of Al Jazeera's most recognisable faces in Gaza.

As they've done with so many objective agencies, individuals and even media outlets, the Israel Defence Force (IDF) claimed they'd taken his and his four colleagues’ lives on the basis of widely condemned claims that he was Hamas. We've yet to see a shred of credible evidence beyond the allegations debunked within minutes of appearing on social media.