An Israeli strike in south Lebanon killed three journalists, drawing condemnation as a war crime, while Israel claimed one was a Hezbollah operative.
BEIRUT: An Israeli strike killed three journalists in south Lebanon on Saturday. Their deaths were confirmed by their channels and a Lebanese military source.
The Lebanese military source identified the victims as Ali Shoeib of Hezbollah’s Al Manar channel and Fatima Ftouni of Al Mayadeen, alongside her brother, a cameraman. Both media outlets, seen as close to the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement, confirmed the killings.
The Israeli military stated it had targeted Shoeib in Jezzine. It accused him of being a “terrorist in the intelligence unit of Hezbollah’s Radwan Force”.
Shoeib “operated within the Hezbollah terrorist organisation under the guise of a journalist for the Al Manar network”, the military said. It alleged he worked to expose Israeli troop locations.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned the killings as “a blatant crime that violates all the norms and treaties”. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam called the targeting “a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.”
Several journalists have been killed in southern Lebanon since hostilities escalated. A strike earlier this month killed Al Manar’s political programmes director in Beirut.
In October 2024, three journalists from Al Manar and Al Mayadeen were killed in an Israeli airstrike. Other journalists, including from Reuters and AFP, have also been killed or wounded covering the border conflict.
Israel launched new raids on southern Lebanon on Saturday. Lebanon’s National News Agency reported strikes on southern towns and the city of Nabatiyeh.
The agency also reported “an attempt by enemy forces to advance toward the Litani area”. Israeli officials have announced plans to establish a buffer zone up to the Litani River.
Hezbollah said it targeted gatherings of Israeli forces in the border town of Debel.
The group began firing rockets at Israel on March 2, pulling Lebanon into a wider regional war.
The Sun Malaysia
