Journalists killed by Israeli strike in southern Lebanon
Journalists killed by Israeli strike in southern Lebanon

Two reporters and a cameraman were killed in an Israeli attack in southern Lebanon on Saturday, according to two television stations affiliated with Iran-backed militia Hezbollah.

The Hezbollah-run Al Manar station reported that its long-time correspondent Ali Shouyaeb died after a strike targeted a vehicle near the town of Jezzine.

In the same attack, Fatima Ftouni, a correspondent for new channel Al Mayadeen, and her brother Mohamed, a cameraman, were also killed, according to the broadcasters.

"Our colleague, correspondent Fatima Fatouni, was martyred in a treacherous Israeli attack," Al Mayadeen said.

The three media workers were reportedly inside a car when it was struck during an Israeli attack in the area. No further details were immediately available.

Lebanese Information Minister Paul Morcos denounced the killing of journalists.

"Once again, we are shocked by the martyrdom of journalists. We condemn and denounce in the strongest terms Israel's repeated and deliberate targeting of journalists," he said in a statement.

The Israeli army confirmed that it targeted Ali Shouyaeb and that he had been killed in the strike. The military described him as "a terrorist in the intelligence unit of Hezbollah’s Radwan Force."

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) alleged that Shouyaeb had "operated within the Hezbollah terrorist organization under the guise of a journalist for the Al-Manar network, while operating systematically to expose the locations of IDF soldiers operating in southern Lebanon and along the border."

Shouyaeb was widely known as one of Al-Manar’s war correspondents, known for his close-up coverage from frontline areas along the Lebanon-Israel border.

Fatouni was also known for her reporting from war-ravaged southern Lebanon.

The killings come amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, which flared up again following the start of the Iran war.

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