Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Thursday condemned the killing of a journalist in the south of Lebanon by Israeli strikes on Wednesday, saying that Israel's targeting of journalists and obstruction of rescue teams from reaching the scene "constitute war crimes".
In a social media post, Salam said Lebanon condemns and opposes this, as do all international law and conventions. Lebanon will "spare no effort in pursuing these crimes through relevant international organizations," he wrote.
On April 17, Lebanon and Israel reached a 10-day ceasefire agreement. As the agreement was about to expire, both sides accused each other of launching attacks.
According to a statement issued by Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health, on Wednesday, two Lebanese female journalists, Amal Khalil and Zeinab Faraj, were conducting interviews in the southern town of al-Tiri when an Israeli missile struck a vehicle in front of them. The two journalists took refuge in a nearby house, but the house was subsequently hit by an Israeli airstrike.
The statement said that when rescue workers rushed to the scene, Israeli forces threw stun grenades and opened fire at them, obstructing the rescue operation. Only after the Israeli airstrike ended were rescue workers able to return to the scene. After several hours of searching, Khalil's body was found in the rubble. The other journalist, Faraj, was injured and has been hospitalized.
Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health condemned the above actions by the Israeli side, stating that the Israeli military not only obstructed rescue efforts for the journalists but also openly attacked ambulances bearing clear Red Cross markings.
Regarding the incident, the Israeli military said that on that day, they monitored two vehicles leaving a Hezbollah military facility and entering what they called the "forward defense line," after which they launched the strike.
Lebanese PM condemns killing of journalist, accusing Israel of war crimes
