Photo of woman's body being paraded by Hamas wins award, sparks outrage

The photo of Hamas parading the body of a woman has won an award in the United States, sparking outrage on the internet.

News agency Associated Press (AP) won the award under the "Team Picture Story of the Year" category in the Pictures of the Year awards.

Shani Louk, a German-Israeli citizen, who was believed to have been taken hostage by Hamas, was found dead in October last year.

In a chilling video, verified by CNN, Louk was seen being displayed on a vehicle by armed militants in Gaza who are chanting "Allahu Akbar," an Arabic phrase meaning "God is Great."

Shani Louk went missing while attending the Supernova music festival in southern Israel where Hamas attacked on October 7, killing over 1,400 people. Louk's mother later received information from the Israeli military that her daughter is dead.

According to the organisers of the award, the category in which the photo won the award “recognizes the collaborative effort of a photography staff covering a single topic or news story”.

Here are a few reactions on X:

“I am disgusted, shocked and enraged that this @AP image - of a murdered Shani Louk from October 7th was given picture of the year,” X user Shoshanna Keats Jaskoll wrote.

“My heart breaks for Shani Louk and her family,” another user wrote.

Around 250 people were abducted, and Hamas is believed to still be holding about 100 hostages.

The international community has been pushing for more aid to enter Gaza, frustrated with the growing humanitarian crisis and with Israel’s restrictions that have prevented more aid getting in by land.

A quarter of Gaza’s population is starving, the United Nations has warned, and the territory's Health Ministry says more than 31,314 Palestinians have been killed. The ministry doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count, but says women and children make up two-thirds of the dead.