Reuters Demands Quick Israeli Investigation into Journalist's Fatal Shooting in Lebanon

Global media firm Reuters has issued a stern demand to Israel, requesting an immediate and exhaustive investigation into a cross-border shooting that resulted in the death of one of its journalists in Lebanon. The tragic incident, involving an exchange of crossfire near the village of Alma al-Shaab in the southern part of Lebanon, also saw six other journalists suffering injuries, including two correspondents from AFP.

Late video journalist Issam Abdallah from Reuters was reported dead from the incident, widely believed to have taken place due to fire from the Israeli side of the volatile Israeli-Lebanese border. Alessandra Galloni, Reuters Editor-in-Chief, expressed her plea on social media platform X, insisting that the investigation should be transparent, presenting visible and coherent evidence.

The Israeli-Lebanese border has experienced escalating violence triggered initially by Palestinian Islamist group Hamas' terrorist attack in early October. The fallout has been devastating, leading to the death of thousands of individuals and creating a dangerous environment for journalists in the region. Abdallah, an experienced journalist, was caught up in this chaos, just doing his job.

Despite the Lebanese army and foreign ministry holding Israel responsible for Abdallah's demise, labeling it a 'deliberate killing', the Israeli military has responded with claims of looking into the matter. Meanwhile, AFP has urged Lebanese and Israeli authorities for an impartial and well-documented investigation into the occurrence.