Israel faces no accountability for journalist deaths amid clear evidence of war crimes

 A year has passed since the October 13, 2023, Israeli military strike that killed Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah and left six other journalists injured in southern Lebanon. Despite multiple investigations concluding that the attack deliberately targeted the journalists, there has been no accountability or justice for those affected.

The strike occurred during the early days of the Israel-Gaza war. At 6:02 p.m., Israeli forces fired two tank shells within a span of 37 seconds into a hilltop in southern Lebanon, about a mile from the nearest active conflict zone. Seven journalists, all wearing clearly marked "Press" vests and standing next to a vehicle marked "TV," were reporting from the scene when the shells hit.

Issam Abdallah, a seasoned video journalist with years of experience covering conflict zones in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Ukraine, was killed instantly. Among the injured were Agence France-Presse (AFP) photographer Christina Assi, who lost her right leg due to the attack. The others injured included Dylan Collins from AFP, Al Jazeera’s Carmen Joukhadar and Elie Brakhya, and Reuters journalists Thaer Al-Sudani and Maher Nazeh.

 Investigations point to a deliberate attack

In March 2024, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon concluded that Israeli forces had deliberately targeted the journalists, a violation of international law. While the report has not been made public, Reuters reviewed the findings. Four other investigations by AFP, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Reuters reached the same conclusion: Israel had carried out a deliberate attack on civilians, an act that constitutes a war crime under international law.

Despite this overwhelming evidence, Israel has yet to release details about its internal investigation into the attack or whether it has even completed a preliminary review. In an email to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) claimed the military had used tank and artillery fire to prevent a suspected "terrorist infiltration" and said the incident was "under review." However, no information has been shared about those responsible for authorizing or carrying out the strike, leaving survivors in the dark.

A broader pattern of targeting journalists

The October 13 strike is part of what many see as a broader trend of Israeli forces targeting journalists, particularly in the context of the Israel-Gaza war. Since the war began on October 7, 2023, CPJ has documented the deaths of four Palestinian journalists — Hamza Al Dahdouh, Mustafa Thuraya, Ismail Al Ghoul, and Rami Al Refee — who were deliberately targeted by Israeli forces for their reporting in Gaza. CPJ is investigating at least 10 other cases of suspected targeting.

Journalist deaths have been difficult to document due to the dangerous conditions in Gaza. To date, 128 journalists have been killed, with 126 of them reportedly dying as a result of Israeli fire. In addition to journalist casualties, media infrastructure has been destroyed, communications have been cut, and access to Gaza for foreign media has been severely limited.

Adding to the sense of impunity, CPJ has noted a troubling pattern in which journalists or their family members are targeted after receiving threats. Despite these findings, no one has been held accountable for any of the deaths, and the IDF has not disclosed if investigations have been opened into any of the incidents.

Decades of impunity

The lack of accountability in Abdallah’s death fits into a larger pattern of impunity in Israel’s handling of journalist killings. In May 2023, CPJ published a report revealing that Israel had failed to hold its military accountable for the deaths of 20 journalists over the previous 22 years.

“The October 13 targeted attack that killed Issam Abdallah and injured six journalists clearly identifiable as press is a continuation of Israel’s decades-long pattern of targeting journalists with impunity,” said CPJ CEO Jodie Ginsberg. “In spite of extensive evidence of a war crime, a year on from the attack, Israel has faced zero accountability for the targeting of journalists. With over two decades of targeted attacks on journalists without any consequences, the Israeli military has been granted license to continue this deadly pattern.”

As the survivors of the attack continue to seek answers, the lack of transparency and justice casts a long shadow over the future of press freedom in conflict zones.