Hundreds of mourners gathered in pouring rain in Beirut's southern suburbs on Sunday for the funeral of three Lebanese journalists killed in an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon the previous day. The victims were Ali Shoeib, a veteran correspondent for Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar TV, Fatima Ftouni of Al Mayadeen channel, and her brother Mohammad Ftouni, a freelance cameraman.
The journalists were traveling together in a vehicle near Jezzine on the highway between Nabatieh and Sidon when an Israeli bomb struck their car on Saturday. According to witnesses, as colleagues rushed to help, a second strike hit the area. The Lebanese health ministry reported that an ambulance carrying first responders was also targeted in the attack.
At the funeral, mourners held aloft posters of the well-known war correspondents, showing them with cameras and wearing press body armor. Many Hezbollah flags were visible at the ceremony in the temporary cemetery where the group holds influence. The bodies of Shoeib and Fatima Ftouni were draped with their respective television channels' logos and adorned with flower bouquets.
They're killing the messengers of this war
Mourner — Sky News
Israeli military officials acknowledged targeting the journalists but attempted to justify the killings by claiming Shoeib was a member of Hezbollah's elite Radwan force and was passing information about Israeli troop movements. However, no evidence was provided to support this allegation. The military made no comment regarding the deaths of the Ftouni siblings.
Al Jazeera frames the story as a clear attack on journalists, emphasizing Lebanese authorities' condemnation of the strike as a war crime. The outlet focuses on the funeral proceedings and the victims' professional roles.
Sky News provides detailed coverage of the funeral while strongly criticizing Israel's justification for the killings. The outlet emphasizes the lack of evidence for Israeli claims and draws parallels to attacks on journalists in Gaza.
The New Arab condemns the killings as a blatant crime while providing context about the broader conflict. The outlet highlights international criticism and the pattern of journalist casualties in the region.
France 24 reports on the funeral proceedings and includes French government criticism of the attack. The outlet emphasizes international condemnation and the violation of international law regarding journalist protection.
We have seen a disturbing pattern in this war and in the decades prior of Israel accusing journalists of being active combatants and terrorists without providing credible evidence. Journalists are not legitimate targets, regardless of the outlet they work for.
Sara Qudah, Regional Director — Committee for the Protection of Journalists
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned the killings as a blatant crime, while international voices joined the chorus of criticism. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot stated that journalists working in war zones must never be targeted, even when they have links with parties to the conflict, calling any deliberate targeting a serious violation of international law.
We've seen this in Gaza where they tried to undermine Palestinian journalists by linking them to Hamas. Now they're trying to do the same to Lebanese journalists by linking them to Hezbollah. Let's be in no doubt. This is a war crime.
Elsy Moufarrej, Union of Journalists in Lebanon — Sky News
The journalist killings occurred amid intensified Israeli military operations in Lebanon, with attacks increasingly targeting healthcare facilities and workers. Since hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah resumed, the Committee to Protect Journalists has documented at least 11 Lebanese journalists and press workers killed by Israeli forces. More than fifty medical personnel have been killed in less than a month of the current escalation.
The conflict was reignited when Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel following the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, prompting large-scale Israeli airstrikes across Lebanon and a ground offensive in the south. Lebanese authorities report at least 1,189 people have been killed since hostilities broke out, despite a November 2024 ceasefire that sought to end the violence.