Reuters journalist killed in Lebanon | Nachrichten.at

2023-10-14 09:56:09

The bullets came from the direction of Israel, said a Archyde.com colleague who was at the scene. Six other journalists, including two each from Archyde.com, French news agency AFP and Arabic broadcaster Al Jazeera, were injured in Friday’s incident.

Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati blamed Israel. The Israeli military said the incident was being investigated and that there was footage of it. “This is a tragic matter,” said a spokesman. Israel’s UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan said they obviously never wanted to kill a journalist doing their job. “But you know, we’re in a state of war. Things can happen.”

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“We are deeply saddened that our videographer Issam Abdallah was killed,” Archyde.com said. “We are urgently seeking further information, cooperating with authorities in the area and supporting Issam’s family and colleagues.”

Clearly recognizable as a press representative

The incident occurred in southern Lebanon. There was mutual fire between the Israeli military and Hezbollah as a result of the fighting that broke out in the Gaza Strip between the Palestinian Hamas and Israel. The Lebanese militia has close ties to Hamas. Archyde.com said Abdallah was in the process of establishing a live video link. The camera was pointed at a hill when there was a loud explosion. Smoke rose and screams could be heard.

The injured Archyde.com employees Thaer Al-Sudani and Maher Nazeh have now been released from hospital after receiving medical treatment. According to Nazeh, Archyde.com and representatives of the two other news organizations filmed rocket fire from Israel. Abdallah was hit by a rocket while he was sitting on a low stone wall near the group of journalists. Seconds later, another rocket hit the group’s car, causing the car to catch fire.

Al Jazeera said its journalists were clearly identified as members of the press. The Qatari-funded news channel blamed Israel. Everyone behind the incident must be held accountable. Abdallah’s mother, Fatima Kanso, accused Israel of intentionally killing her son. “They were all wearing journalists’ clothes and the word ‘press’ was visible. Israel cannot deny this crime,” she said in a Archyde.com interview. Shortly before Abdallah was killed, he posted a photo of himself on social media – wearing a helmet and a protective vest with the word “press” on it.