An Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon resulted in the deaths of three journalists covering the Israel-Hezbollah conflict, as reported by their respective TV stations. Hezbollah’s al-Manar TV confirmed the killing of long-time correspondent Ali Shoeib, while the Israeli military claimed to have targeted Shoeib, alleging he was a Hezbollah intelligence operative.
In the same airstrike in the district of Jezzine, Beirut-based Al Mayadeen TV reported the deaths of reporter Fatima Ftouni and her brother Mohammed, a video journalist. Ftouni had just finished a live report from southern Lebanon before the strike.
Lebanon’s top officials, including President Joseph Aoun, condemned the airstrike, labeling it a violation of laws protecting journalists. Al-Manar TV described Shoeib as a symbol of resistance media and a prominent war correspondent who had covered south Lebanon for nearly thirty years.
The Israeli army accused Shoeib of exposing the locations of Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon, maintaining contact with Hezbollah militants, and inciting against Israeli troops and civilians. Al-Manar TV did not directly respond to these allegations but praised Shoeib for his professional and credible reporting.
This incident reflects previous Israeli military actions against journalists in conflict zones, such as targeting Palestinian journalists during the conflict with Hamas in Gaza. The Israeli military did not mention the other two individuals who died in the airstrike.
Since the start of the Israel-Hezbollah conflict on March 2, Israel’s air force has targeted Hezbollah’s civilian facilities, including al-Manar’s headquarters and Al-Nour radio station. This latest strike follows a recent Israeli airstrike in central Beirut that killed Mohammed Sherri, head of political programs at al-Manar TV, and his wife.
The deaths of these journalists bring the total number of media workers killed in Lebanon this year to five, including freelance photojournalist Hussain Hamood, who collaborated with al-Manar TV and was killed in Nabatieh earlier in the week.