An Israeli airstrike on a media compound in southern Lebanon's Hasbaiyya region has killed at least three journalists and injured several others as they slept in guesthouses.
The victims, Ghassan Najjar, a cameraman, and Mohamed Reda, an engineer, both worked for Al Mayadeen, a pan-Arab TV channel. Wissam Qassim, a camera operator for Al-Manar TV, was also among those killed.
Local media aired footage from the scene showing collapsed buildings and cars marked "press" covered in dust and rubble. The Israeli army did not issue a warning prior to the strike, and later said it was looking into it, according to news agency AP.
Lebanese Information Minister Ziad Makary condemned the attack as "an assassination" and said the journalists were targeted while reporting on Israel's "crimes".
"This is an assassination, after monitoring and tracking, with premeditation and planning, as there were 18 journalists present at the location representing seven media institutions," Mr. Makary wrote on X.
The Committee to Protect Journalists and the International Federation of Journalists have also denounced the killings.
Journalists have been regularly targeted and faced unprecedented dangers while covering Israel’s wars in Gaza and Lebanon.
This incident brings the number of journalists killed in Lebanon since 8 October 2023 to 12, with six dying while on duty. The Committee to Protect Journalists reports at least 128 journalists and media workers have been killed in Gaza and Lebanon since the war began.
Earlier this week, Israel accused journalists working for Al Jazeera of being members of militant groups, citing documents it purportedly found in Gaza. Al Jazeera denied the claims, calling them "a blatant attempt to silence the few remaining journalists in the region."
The Committee to Protect Journalists dismissed the allegations, stating that Israel has repeatedly made similar unproven claims without producing credible evidence.
