Lebanese demand justice for journalist killed by Israeli tank fire

Lebanese journalists and activists Sunday demanded justice for Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah, who was killed a year earlier in what probes said was Israeli tank fire while covering cross-border clashes in south Lebanon.

Two strikes in quick succession on October 13, 2023 killed Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah, 37, and wounded six other journalists including AFP photographer Christina Assi and video journalist Dylan Collins.

Assi later had a leg amputated and spent five months in intensive care in hospital as a result of the attack.

Two investigations have pointed to an Israeli tank being behind the attack, but Israel has denied it targets "civilians, including journalists".

Friends and acquaintances on Sunday shared photos Abdallah had taken, or pictures of him.

Legal Agenda, a non-governmental organisation, posted on social media: "A year after the killing of photographer Issam Abdullah, Israeli impunity continues."

Lebanese rights group Maharat called on the international community to "implement treaties, resolutions and commitments to protect journalist".

In a post on X, journalist Salman Andary demanded "justice for Issam and for all the victims of this crime".

Economist Jad Chaaban wrote on X: "Israel killed... Abdallah, by shelling a clearly marked press spot in the South of Lebanon."

"The Israeli army is still carrying out mass executions until today with total impunity," he said.

After nearly a year of cross-border fire, Israel on September 23 escalated its campaign targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon.

More than 1,200 people have since been killed in Lebanon, according to a tally of official figures, and more than a million have been displaced.

On Thursday, the Committee to Protect Journalists decried a lack of accountability for Israel over the killing of Abdallah.

CPJ chief executive Jodie Ginsberg said that "in spite of extensive evidence of a war crime, a year on from the attack, Israel has faced zero accountability for the targeting of journalists".

The journalists were working near the border village of Alma al-Shaab in an area that has been the site of near-daily clashes between the Israeli army and Hezbollah.

An AFP investigation in December pointed to a tank shell only used by the Israeli army being fired in the attack.

A separate Reuters probe, including initial findings from the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), found two Israeli tank rounds fired from the same position across the border were used.

TNO's final report said an Israeli tank crew then "likely" opened fire on them with a machine gun.

An Israeli military spokesman said after the strike: "We are very sorry for the journalist's death", adding that Israel was "looking into" the incident, without taking responsibility.