Three rights organisations have concluded that an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon that killed journalist Amal Khalil and wounded another reporter earlier this year amounted to an apparent war crime.
In separate investigations released on Thursday, Human Rights Watch (HRW), Amnesty International and Lebanese rights group The Legal Agenda said the April 22 attack in the village of Al Tiri appeared to deliberately target civilians.
Khalil, a 42-year-old reporter for Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar, and freelance camerawoman Zeinab Faraj had sought shelter in a building after an Israeli strike hit a vehicle travelling ahead of them.
The building was later struck, killing Khalil. Faraj was rescued, while Lebanese authorities accused the Israeli army of obstructing rescue efforts as Khalil remained trapped alive.
'Apparent war crimes'
HRW said the Israeli strikes "included apparently deliberate attacks on civilians and civilian objects, which would make them war crimes."
Amnesty described the incident as a "direct attack on civilians which should be investigated as a war crime."
Both organisations said the Israeli military "knew or should have known" the two journalists were civilians, noting that Israeli drones were operating over the area at the time.
The Legal Agenda said its investigation found that the attack "constitute[d] war crimes and grave violations of international humanitarian law."
Israeli response
The Israeli army claimed at the time that it had targeted a vehicle that had departed from a Hezbollah military facility and later struck the building where those inside the vehicle had sought refuge.
It denied preventing rescue teams from reaching the site.
Amnesty said the Israeli military told the organisation the incident had undergone a preliminary review and that "relevant lessons were implemented accordingly," adding that it "regrets any harm caused to journalists."
Israel killed 15 journalists in Lebanon since 2023
Khalil was a veteran correspondent who had covered southern Lebanon throughout cross-border hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 15 journalists and media workers have been killed by Israel in Lebanon since October 2023.
Among them was Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah, who was killed in an Israeli strike in October 2023 that also wounded six other journalists, including AFP's Dylan Collins and Christina Assi, who later underwent a leg amputation.
Amnesty's regional director, Heba Morayef, said the continued lack of accountability for attacks on journalists and civilians had enabled further unlawful strikes, including direct attacks on civilians.
