Israeli strike kills three journalists in south Lebanon

The Israeli military confirmed killing Al Manar correspondent Ali Shoeib, accusing him of having "operated within the Hezbollah terrorist organisation under the guise of a journalist".

Lebanon was pulled into the Middle East war when Tehran-backed Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel on March 2 to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme leader in the opening salvo of the US-Israeli war against the Islamic republic.

Israel has responded with large-scale airstrikes across Lebanon and a ground offensive in the south, with Lebanese authorities reporting at least 1,189 people killed since the hostilities broke out.

A Lebanese military source told AFP earlier on Saturday that Ali Shoeib of Hezbollah's Al Manar channel and Fatima Ftouni of Al Mayadeen, seen as close to the Iran-backed movement, were killed in Jezzine, alongside Ftouni's brother, a cameraman.

Al Mayadeen and Al Manar confirmed the deaths of their journalists.

Shoeib was one of Al Manar's most prominent war correspondents, having covered Israeli attacks on Lebanon for decades.

In a statement, the Israeli military said it had targeted Shoeib, alleging that he "operated within the Hezbollah terrorist organisation under the guise of a journalist for the Al Manar network, while operating systematically to expose the locations of IDF soldiers operating in southern Lebanon and along the border".

It later said that it had killed "over 800" Hezbollah members "from the air, sea, and on the ground" since the start of the current war.
'Blatant crime'
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned the killings, calling them "a blatant crime that violates all the norms and treaties under which journalists enjoy international protection in wars".

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said the targeting of journalists was "a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law", while Information Minister Paul Morcos deemed the actions to be "classified as war crimes".

A strike on central Beirut earlier this month killed Mohammad Sherri, Al Manar's political programmes director.

Several journalists were also killed and wounded during the previous round of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah in 2023 and 2024.

At least five journalists were killed in Israeli strikes in the south in that conflict, including a correspondent for Al-Mayadeen TV and a cameraman for Al-Manar.

In October 2023, Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah was killed and six others wounded, including AFP journalists Dylan Collins and Christina Assi while covering the conflict near the Israeli border.

An independent AFP investigation concluded that two Israeli 120mm tank shells were fired from the Jordeikh area inside Israel.
Strikes on south
Israel launched a new series of raids on southern Lebanon on Saturday, killing nine paramedics according to Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine.

The minister said the nine medics included four from Hezbollah's Islamic Health Committee who were targeted by Israeli strikes while carrying out rescue missions, and five from the Hezbollah-allied Amal movement's Risala Scouts, who were also on duty.

Since the start of the war, the Health Ministry has documented the deaths of 46 paramedics and five other healthcare workers in Lebanon due to Israeli strikes, the minister said.

The Lebanese army mourned the death of one of its soldiers, killed in an Israeli airstrike in the town of Deir Zahrani. A military source told AFP that the soldier was not on duty.

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported "a series of strikes" at dawn on southern towns and villages, and on the city of Nabatiyeh, hitting "residential and commercial buildings and a fuel station".

In Henniyeh, south Lebanon, the health ministry said an Israeli strike killed seven people, six Syrians and one Lebanese, and wounded nine Syrians.

The Israeli military said Saturday morning that it was continuing "to strike Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure".

Hezbollah, for its part, said in a statement that it had targeted gatherings of Israeli forces near the town of Taybeh, on the southeastern part of the Litani River, around 3.6km from the eastern side of the Israeli border.

In separate statements, the group said it also targeted gatherings of Israeli forces in Debel, a predominantly Christian border town where some residents remain despite the fighting.

The NNA said a man and his son were killed nearby after Israeli gunfire hit their "civilian car".

Israeli forces have been pushing into areas near the border, and officials have announced plans to establish a buffer zone up to the Litani River, around 30 kilometres (20 miles) north of Israel.