France says 'light must be shed' on 13 October strike on journalists in Lebanon

France  wants clarification about a missile strike in southern Lebanon on 13 October that killed a Reuters journalist and injured six others, including two from French news agency AFP.

The gear that belonged to Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah who was killed on 13 October by a strike, is displayed during a press conference by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch in Beirut, Lebanon, on 7 December, 2023. © Reuters - Emilie Madi

"All light must be shed on this tragedy," a French foreign ministry statement said, adding that international humanitarian law obliged warring parties to "protect civilians, and in particular journalists, who must be able to exercise their profession freely and in complete safety".

An investigation published on 7 December by AFP (Agence France-Presse) into the strike pointed to a tank shell only used by the Israeli army in the high-tension border region.

Top US diplomat Antony Blinken on the same day welcomed an Israeli investigation into the strike as "important and appropriate".

• Strikes on journalists in Lebanon were 'targeted', says RSF media watchdog

The strike killed Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah, 37, instantly.

The other journalists present - two other Reuters journalists, two from Al Jazeera, and two from AFP - were all injured.

 AFP photographer Christina Assi, 28, was seriously wounded and later had a leg amputated.

Israel's army said on Friday that the incident occurred in an "active combat zone" and was under review.

Rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have said the journalists were clearly identifiable as members of the media and called for a "war crime" investigation.

(with AFP)