Lebanese President: Israel's deliberate targeting of journalists is a crime against humanity
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said that Israel's deliberate targeting of journalists is a "crime against humanity" aimed at hiding the truth about its acts of aggression against his country.
In a statement on Thursday, April 23, 2026, Aoun considered that the targeting of journalists is "a crime against humanity punishable by international laws and norms and constitutes an incentive for the intervention of the international community to put an end to it."
He expressed his pain "for the martyrdom of journalist Amal Khalil as a result of the Israeli shelling that targeted the town of al-Tiri on Wednesday, in which journalist Zainab Faraj was also injured."
Raid on al-Tiri kills journalist and injures another
The Lebanese president's remarks came after the Israeli raid on a house in the town of al-Tiri on Wednesday evening, killing Khalil and wounding Faraj, in a new violation of the temporary truce, which entered its sixth day amid continuous escalation. The Lebanese Civil Defense said its teams were able to recover Khalil's body from under the rubble in the presence of the Lebanese army and the Red Cross, while Faraj was transferred to the Tebnin Governmental Hospital with moderate injuries.
In an official position, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam considered that targeting journalists and obstructing the access of aid teams to them, and even targeting their positions again after the arrival of these teams, constitutes "described war crimes", and said that attacks on media workers in the south are no longer isolated incidents, but have become a "consistent approach" that requires follow-up before international forums.
For his part, Information Minister Paul Morcos mourned the journalist, stressing that the targeting of media workers is a "flagrant violation of international humanitarian law", which calls for urgent international action to stop these attacks and prevent their recurrence.
The Press Club in Lebanon also condemned the attack, calling for international intervention to protect journalists in light of the repeated violations they are subjected to.
According to the National News Agency, Israeli forces surrounded the two journalists and prevented ambulance teams from reaching them, and another raid targeted the main road between the towns of al-Tiri and Haddaha, which hindered rescue operations, noting that a Red Cross ambulance came under fire during the transport of the injured Zainab Faraj and showed bullet marks on her body.
The Israeli army announces the interception of a "suspicious air target" over southern Lebanon
In a parallel development, the Israeli army announced on Thursday that it had intercepted a "suspicious aerial target" that it said was aimed at a gathering of its soldiers infiltrating into Lebanese territory.
He said in a statement that his forces had spotted the target before intercepting it, and that the results of the operation were "under examination," noting that the target had not entered Israeli airspace and the sirens had not been activated. The military usually uses the term to refer to drones.
The incident comes after a series of similar incidents over the past two days, during which Hezbollah announced several attacks, as Washington prepares to host a second round of preliminary talks between Lebanon and Israel at the ambassadorial level, in an attempt to reach an agreement that would end the war.
Ongoing escalation despite truce
Israel continues to violate the truce announced by US President Donald Trump on April 17 for a renewable ten-day period, which has led to deaths and injuries, the latest of which was journalist Amal Khalil. Since the start of the escalation on March 2, Israeli shelling has killed 2,475 people and injured 7,696 others, in addition to displacing more than one million people, according to the latest Lebanese official data.