Oct 13 (Portal) – A Portal video journalist was killed and six other journalists wounded in southern Lebanon on Friday when rockets fired from Israel hit them, according to a Portal videographer who was at the scene.
The group of journalists, including from Al Jazeera and Agence France-Presse, worked near Alma al-Shaab, close to the Israeli border, where the Israeli military and the Lebanese militia Hezbollah have been fighting in border clashes.
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and a Hezbollah lawmaker blamed Israel for the incident.
The Israel Defense Forces did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Israel’s UN envoy Gilad Erdan said in a briefing on Friday: “Of course we would never want to beat, kill or shoot a journalist doing his job. But you know, we are in a state of war, things could happen.” He added that the country would launch an investigation.
Portal said in a statement that Issam Abdallah was killed while providing a live video signal for broadcasters. The camera was focused on a hill when a loud explosion shook the camera, filling the air with smoke and screaming.
“We are deeply saddened to learn that our videographer Issam Abdallah has been killed,” Portal said.
“We are urgently seeking further information, cooperating with authorities in the area and supporting Issam’s family and colleagues.”
Two other Portal journalists, Thaer Al-Sudani and Maher Nazeh, were injured in the incident and released from a hospital after receiving medical treatment, Portal said.
Nazeh said Portal and the two other news organizations were filming rocket fire from Israel when one hit Abdallah, who was sitting on a low stone wall near the rest of the group. Seconds later, another rocket hit the car used by the group and set it on fire.
While other news outlets, including the Associated Press and Al Jazeera, said the shells were Israeli, Portal was unable to determine whether the rockets were actually fired by Israel.
Agence France-Presse said two of its journalists were injured.
[1/3]Portal journalist Issam Abdallah poses for a photo in Beirut, Lebanon, September 24, 2020. Portal/Yara Abi Nader/File Photo Acquire License Rights
Qatari-funded broadcaster Al Jazeera said two of its journalists were also injured in the incident and were clearly identified as journalists. She blamed Israel for the incident and said everyone behind “this criminal act” should be held accountable.
“The broadcast vehicle was bombed and burned completely, despite our team being present nearby/side by side with the rest of the international media teams at an agreed location,” Al Jazeera said in a statement.
The village of Alma Al-Shaab has been the scene of repeated clashes since the war broke out further south between Israel and Hamas, a Palestinian militia with close ties to Hezbollah.
Hamas militants broke out of the Gaza Strip a week ago and launched a deadly attack on Israeli civilians and soldiers, leading to heavy bombardment of the Gaza Strip.
In an interview with Portal, Fatima Kanso, Abdallah’s mother, blamed Israel for her son’s death.
“Israel deliberately killed my son. They were all wearing journalist’s clothing and the word ‘press’ was visible. Israel cannot deny this crime,” she added.
Shortly before Abdallah was killed, he posted a photo on social media of himself wearing a helmet and body armor with the word “press” on it.
The Israel Defense Forces did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Kanso’s comments.
“We always try to mitigate and avoid civilian casualties,” Erdan, Israel’s U.N. envoy, told reporters in a briefing.
“We feel sorry for them. We’re sorry. And we will investigate it. “At the moment it is too early to name what happened there,” he said.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, a peacekeeping force that patrols Lebanon’s border with Israel, said it was saddened by the news and called for an end to the shooting.
“The potential for this escalation to spiral out of control is clear and must be stopped,” it said in a statement.
Edited by Mark Bendeich and Edward Tobin
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