Rights organizations Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch (HRW) have urged for a thorough investigation into the Israeli strike in Lebanon, labeling it as potentially constituting a “war crime.”
The strike resulted in the death of one journalist and left six others injured, including severe wounds that led to the amputation of a leg for AFP photographer Christina Assi, 28, who remains hospitalized.
Issam Abdallah, a 37-year-old Reuters journalist, was killed instantly in the October 13 strike near the Israeli border in the southern part of Lebanon. The group present at the time included two additional Reuters journalists, two from Al Jazeera, and two from AFP, all sustaining injuries.
Independent inquiries conducted by both Amnesty and HRW, akin to an earlier AFP investigation, indicated that the initial strike causing Abdallah’s death and Assi’s severe injuries likely resulted from a tank round fired from Israel.
Amnesty International has stressed the necessity of investigating these strikes, asserting they appear to be direct attacks on civilians, potentially warranting classification as war crimes.
Aya Majzoub, Amnesty’s deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, emphasized the need for accountability for the killing of Issam Abdallah and the injuries inflicted on six journalists, condemning the targeting of journalists performing their duties.
HRW echoed similar sentiments, denouncing the strikes as apparent deliberate attacks on civilians, a violation of international humanitarian law. The investigation by HRW indicated that the journalists were identifiable as media personnel, distant from ongoing hostilities, and stationary for a significant duration before the strike occurred.
The evidence, including verified images showing the journalists wearing press-labeled body armor and their vehicle distinctly marked as a media crew, suggests that Israeli forces likely recognized the journalists’ status, as highlighted by HRW’s Lebanon researcher Ramzi Kaiss.
The deliberate targeting of this visibly identified group of journalists, according to Kaiss, constitutes an unlawful and deliberate attack, raising concerns about adherence to international laws safeguarding civilians, especially those engaged in journalistic work.
