Reuters visuals journalist Issam Abdallah was killed on October 13 in southern Lebanon in a “targeted” strike from the Israeli border, according to preliminary results of an investigation, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) reported on October 29.
“According to the ballistic analysis carried out by RSF, the shots came from the east of where the journalists were standing; from the direction of the Israeli border. Two strikes in the same place in such a short space of time (just over 30 seconds), from the same direction, clearly indicate precise targeting.”
The Israel Defence Forces claimed it did not deliberately target journalists and was investigating the October 13 incident.
Reuters stated that it was reviewing a preliminary finding by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), which found that Issam Abdallah was killed on October 13 while working with six other journalists near the village of Alma al-Shaab, close to the border, where the Israeli military and Lebanon’s Hezbollah were engaged in a firefight.
“We reiterate our call to the Israeli authorities to conduct a swift, thorough and transparent probe into what happened. And we call upon all other authorities with information about the incident to provide it. We will continue to fight for the rights of all journalists to report the news in the public interest free of harassment or harm, wherever they are.”
However, the RSF did not name those who attacked the journalists. It claimed its preliminary conclusions were based on “careful analysis of eyewitness testimony, video footage and ballistics expertise.”
It is unlikely that the journalists were mistaken for combatants, especially as they were not hiding… They were wearing helmets and bullet-proof waistcoats marked ‘press’.
The organisation released preliminary findings and an accompanying six-minute video before the investigation was completed. The head of its Middle East desk, Jonathan Dagher, stated that they were confident in the data collected, but noted that some elements had yet to be confirmed.
There are other elements which we have not yet been able to confirm.
The Lebanese army and government blamed Israel for Abdallah’s death.
