Rights groups call Israel's killing of journalist Amal Khalil a war crime

human rights armed conflict

An Israeli strike on April 22 killed 42-year-old Lebanese journalist Amal Khalil and injured her camerawoman, Zeinab Faraj. Khalil worked for Al-Akhbar, a left-wing daily close to Hezbollah.

Investigations conducted by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and Legal Agenda concluded that Israel deliberately and directly attacked the pair with apparent knowledge that they were civilians. The organizations stated that the Israeli army had several indicators to identify Khalil and further alleged that Israel obstructed rescuers.

The rights groups have called for the attacks to be investigated as war crimes, noting that the UN human rights office considers deliberate attacks on civilians to be war crimes. Human Rights Watch has specifically called for states to halt arm sales to Israel and implement targeted sanctions on the Israeli officials responsible for ongoing crimes.

The IDF stated that it was targeting Hezbollah and expressed regret for any harm caused to journalists.

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