Israel

Report: Israeli Tank Likely Fired on Journalists in Lebanon

MAR 7 2024·Updated MAR 8 2024

Story

Image credit: Amir Levy/Stringer/Getty Images News via Getty Images

The Facts

According to a report published Thursday, it is "likely" that an Israeli tank opened fire at journalists in Lebanon in early October, shortly after the onset of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, killing Reuters visual journalist Issam Abdallah.
Reuters
The tank allegedly fired two 120mm rounds and a heavy machine gun for nearly two minutes toward the journalists' position, according to The Hague-based Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO).
Al Jazeera
One of those shells then hit and killed Abdallah and injured several others in the group of journalists — TNO's report was commissioned by Reuters soon after to investigate the incident.
Reuters
At least six journalists working for Reuters, Al Jazeera, AFP, and AP were reportedly wounded in the attack. According to an Al Jazeera reporter, the team had been clearly marked as "press."
Al Jazeera
The border has seen daily exchanges of fire since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack, in which over 1K Israelis were killed. Civilians have been displaced on both sides of the border, with the war so far killing over 200 Hezbollah fighters and around 40 Lebanese civilians.
Voice of America
Israel has been accused of targeting journalists — a charge it vehemently denies — since before the war began. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists claimed last month that around 100 journalists have died in the conflict, the vast majority of whom were Palestinians in Gaza.
ICIJ

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Anti-Israel narrative

Israel has long made efforts to curtail the media's ability to cover its military actions, even going so far as to kill Palestinian and Lebanese journalists in targeted strikes. The evidence overwhelmingly suggests that Israeli forces have committed systematic violence against those trying to expose the country's brutal crimes. Israel's actions are a clear violation of international humanitarian law, as journalists are deemed civilians and not part of any conflict. More journalists will needlessly die if Israel is not held accountable for its policies.

Al Jazeera

Pro-Israel narrative

Though the press, biased against Israel at every turn, has always claimed that the country targets journalists, the reality is that Israel consistently goes out of its way to avoid harming civilians, even to the degree that its forces may incur additional casualties as a result of upholding that principle. The number of "journalists" killed in the war that is often cited by the media is Hamas propaganda and a gross overestimate, with the real number likely being less than 20. Either way, tragic accidents shouldn't be politicized or used to defame Israel's moral standing in this war it didn't want.

Jewish News Syndicate (JNS)