Advocacy groups urge UN to investigate killing of Reuters video journalist in Lebanon

LONDON: Advocacy groups have urged UN officials to investigate the death of Reuters video journalist Issam Abdallah, who was killed in southern Lebanon in October.

In a letter signed by 11 organizations, including the Committee to Protect Journalists, Reporters Without Borders and the Lebanese Center for Human Rights, the group requested the UN Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and Israel, to examine the circumstances surrounding Israel’s Oct. 13 attack.

They also urged the commission to investigate potential war crimes committed against journalists since the start of the Israel-Gaza conflict on Oct. 7.

Abdallah, a 37-year-old video journalist, was killed by Israeli tank shells while filming a cross-border exchange.

Six other journalists were injured in the attack, including AFP photographer Christina Assi, who had her leg amputated.

Independent investigations by Reuters, AFP, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and RSF concluded that the attack was “deliberately” launched by Israeli forces on “clearly visible media members.”

The organizations condemned the attack as a violation of international law and called for a war crimes investigation.

A sixth investigation conducted by UNIFIL similarly concluded, according to a Reuters report published in March, that “an Israeli tank killed Reuters reporter Issam Abdallah in Lebanon by firing two 120 mm rounds at a group of ‘clearly identifiable journalists’ in violation of international law.”

The letter asked the UN to publicly identify the military unit responsible for the attack and criticized Israeli authorities for failing to hold the perpetrators accountable.

“We submit this request in the hope that the work of the Commission may contribute to ensuring accountability for the killing of Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah, who lost his life in that attack, and for the six other journalists injured alongside him: Agence France Presse (AFP) journalists Christina Assi and Dylan Collins; Al Jazeera journalists Carmen Joukhadar and Elie Brakhya; and Reuters journalists Maher Nazih and Thaer Al-Soudani,” the letter read.

“Over 10 months have passed since this potential war crime was committed, but no tangible steps have been taken by any judicial body to secure justice for the victims and accountability for the perpetrators.”

It added: “We believe this to be of crucial importance to ensure redress for all victims, as well as to end impunity for crimes committed against journalists since 7 October 2023, including the ongoing targeting of journalists in Gaza, where more than 100 media employees have been killed by Israeli forces.”