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Lebanon PM says Israeli strikes killed journalists

Reuters Colleagues of the two Al Mayadeen journalists, who Lebanese officials say were killed by an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon, mourn outside the channel's office in Beirut, Lebanon (21 November 2023)Reuters
Colleagues of the two journalists gathered outside Al Mayadeen's offices in Beirut after learning of their deaths

Four people, including two journalists, have been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon, local media say, as exchanges of fire intensify along the border.

Lebanon's prime minister condemned the "attack" in the village of Tayr Harfa that killed an Al Mayadeen TV reporter and cameraman along with another man.

Israel's military said it had "operated against a threat" in the same area and that it was reviewing the incident.

An elderly woman was also reportedly killed in Kfarkela, to the east.

Earlier, Israeli aircraft struck what the military said were "terrorist cells" in the border area as well as targets belonging to the Lebanese group Hezbollah, which has repeatedly fired missiles and mortar shells across the border since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip six weeks ago.

Al Mayadeen, a Beirut-based Arabic TV channel, said its reporter Farah Omar and cameraman Rabih al-Maamari were "deliberately targeted" as they reported from Tayr Harfa, a village about 2km (1.2 miles) from the border.

"An Israeli warplane fired two rockets on Farah and Rabih's location," it said.

"Farah and Rabih had just ended a live broadcast at 10 AM [08:00 GMT], giving updates on the latest Israeli bombardment in South Lebanon."

A picture posted on social media appeared to show the journalists' bodies on the ground near a burning TV camera mounted on a tripod.

Map showing Tayr Harfa and Kfarkela in southern Lebanon

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency (NNA) said another civilian, whom it named as Hussein Aqeel, was killed. Al Mayadeen's director, Ghassan bin Jiddo, said he was a "contributor".

"This attack proves once again that there are no limits to Israeli crimes, and that its only goal is to silence the media that exposes its crimes and attacks," Lebanese Prime Minister Nabjib Mikati said, according to NNA.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement that its soldiers had "operated against a threat posed from a launching area of ​​the Hezbollah terrorist organisation" in the Jibbain area, which is 1.5km east of Tayr Harfa.

"This is an area with active hostilities, where exchanges of fire occur. Presence in the area is dangerous. The incident is under review," it added.

The IDF has previously insisted that it does not deliberately target journalists, but this would appear to be the third attack on journalists working in southern Lebanon since the start of the war.

A fourth person, who NNA identified as 80-year-old Laiqa Sarhan, was killed and several family members were wounded in a strike on a village further east along the border, the aftermath of which was witnessed by a BBC team.

Their house in Kfarkela was hit and badly damaged. Fire fighters from local civil defence units rushed to the scene to put out the blaze, as ambulances took the wounded family members, including children, to hospital.

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AFP Smoke rises after an artillery strike near the Lebanon border village of Yaroun on 21 November 2023, as seen from northern IsraelAFP
Smoke was seen rising in southern Lebanon from northern Israel after an artillery strike on Tuesday

Earlier on Tuesday, the IDF put out a statement saying that aircraft had "struck three armed terrorist cells in the area of the border" and "a number of Hezbollah terror targets, including military infrastructure and structures used for directing terrorist activity".

Hezbollah is an Iran-backed Shia Islamist group that wields considerable military and political power in Lebanon. It is considered a terrorist organisation by Israel, UK, the US and others.

The deadly exchanges along the border escalated after 7 October, when Gaza-based gunmen from Hamas - another Iran-backed group that is also classed as a terrorist group by Israel and Western powers - attacked southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking about 240 others hostage.

Israel launched a military operation to destroy Hamas in response to the attack. More than 14,000 people in Gaza have been killed, according to the Hamas-run government.

Tuesday's incident in Lebanon comes almost a week after an Israeli attack hit an area in the village of Yaroun where a group of journalists was working.

On 13 October, Israeli strikes killed a Reuters news agency cameraman, Issam Abdallah, and six other journalists were wounded as they reported on clashes near the border.

Lebanon's public health ministry reports that at least 77 people, including combatants and civilians, have been killed due to armed clashes along the border with Israel, according to the UN.

Israeli authorities say six soldiers and three civilians have been killed in northern Israel over the same period.