Investigation finds 'Israel' killed Reuters reporter in Lebanon
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TNO's report discloses that the first Israeli shell in the October incident killed 37-year-old Issam Abdallah and caused severe injuries to 28-year-old Christina Assi, a photographer with AFP.
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Civil Defense workers transfer the body of Reuters videographer Issam Abdallah who was killed by an Israeli shelling in the South of Lebanon on October 13, 2023. (AP)
A newly published report revealed that an Israeli tank crew killed a Reuters reporter in Lebanon last October. In further detail, the attack involved firing two shells at a clearly identified group of journalists, followed by a 'likely' use of a heavy machine gun in a 1-minute and 45-second assault.
The findings of a report commissioned by Reuters and conducted by the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) also unmasked that a tank located 1.34 km away in "Israel" fired two 120 mm rounds at the group of reporters.
The initial shell killed 37-year-old Issam Abdallah and inflicted severe injuries on 28-year-old Christina Assi, a photographer for Agence France-Presse (AFP).
In December, a Reuters inquiry highlighted TNO's initial discovery that a tank in "Israel" had targeted the journalists. The institute's conclusive report on Thursday disclosed that audio captured by an Al Jazeera video camera at the scene indicated that the reporters were also subjected to gunfire from 0.50 caliber rounds, similar to those employed by Browning machine guns that can be mounted on "Israel's" Merkava tanks.
"It is considered a likely scenario that a Merkava tank, after firing two tank rounds, also used its machine gun against the location of the journalists," TNO's report said.
"The latter cannot be concluded with certainty as the direction and exact distance of (the machine gun) fire could not be established," it added.
Attacks on journalists are prohibited under international humanitarian law, as individuals in the news media are afforded the same comprehensive protection as civilians and cannot be deemed military targets.
"We condemn, in the strongest terms, the attack on a clearly identifiable group of journalists, working in the open. The attack killed our colleague Issam Abdallah and injured several others. We reiterate our calls on Israel to explain how this could have happened and to hold those responsible to account," Reuters Editor-in-Chief Alessandra Galloni said.
Phil Chetwynd, the Global News Director for AFP, reiterated the demand for a comprehensive and transparent investigation by the Israeli army.
"If reports of sustained machine gun fire are confirmed, this would add more weight to the theory this was a targeted and deliberate attack," he said.
'A war crime'
TNO pointed out that the seven journalists were outfitted in blue flak jackets and helmets, the majority of which had "PRESS" written on them in white letters. They had been recording cross-border shelling from a distance in an open area on a hill near the Lebanese village of Alma al-Shaab for nearly an hour before the assault. Video footage of the aftermath of the attack also displayed a black car belonging to Reuters, marked with "TV" in large yellow letters made out of tape on both the hood and the roof.
The report also stated that there was an unobstructed line of sight from the location where the tank rounds were discharged to the site of the attack. In the live TV broadcasts leading up to the assault, one or more drones could be heard, and footage showed an Israeli helicopter visible overhead. The institute accurately identified the origin of the two tank rounds by analyzing video footage of the second round's muzzle blast and flight, along with audio recordings from the incident scene.
TNO's examination of the machine gun fire indicated that the "only reasonable match" was for a 0.50 caliber weapon discharged from 1.34 km away; the same distance as the tank rounds. However, the audio recordings lacked the necessary details to pinpoint the firing location. Nevertheless, the rapid succession of the bullet bursts following the tank rounds, along with the analysis, led TNO to assert that it was "likely" that both came from the same source.
Approximately 30 seconds after the second tank round, a burst of around 25 shots was fired from a machine gun, followed by bursts of nine and 12 shots. Just over 30 seconds later, there were three shots, then a single shot, and a metallic ping, possibly indicating the bullet hitting a low wall near the camera, according to TNO. In addition to Issam Abdallah, Reuters photographer Thaier Al-Sudani, 47, cameraman Maher Nazeh, 53, as well as two journalists from Al Jazeera and another from AFP were also wounded in the attack.
The TNO report, commissioned by Reuters, has been reviewed by several experts at the request of the news agency.
"The TNO report does conclude that it was likely, in addition to the two tank rounds, that machine gun fire came from the same location, and that adds to, or compounds the, deliberateness with which they seem to have been targeted, directly," said Jessica Dorsey, an expert in international humanitarian law at Utrecht University.
"And I think that that, from a legal perspective, if this ever got to a courtroom, makes even more of a compelling argument that this was indeed a war crime," she said.
Not an isolated incident
The occupation forces have targeted numerous correspondents and journalists in both Gaza and Lebanon during the ongoing Israeli aggression on the two fronts.
In late November, an Israeli drone strike in southern Lebanon led to the martyrdom of Al Mayadeen's reporter Farah Omar and cameraman Rabih Me'mari, along with freelancer Hussein Akil.
Targeting journalists and civilians has become a standard within the doctrine of the Israeli occupation forces. Over the past five months, Israeli strikes in Gaza have resulted in the killing of at least 103 journalists, marking one of the deadliest periods for the media, as reported by Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
