RSF's findings unveil 'targeted strike' killed Reuters photojournalist Issam Abdallah

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has stated that a targeted strike hit the journalists' vehicle on the Lebanese southern borders, which resulted in the killing of Reuters photojournalist Issam Abdallah.

Releasing a video reconstruction of the accident that resulted in the injury of several journalists, RSF reported that "the initial findings of the investigation show that the reporters were not collateral victims of the shooting. One of their vehicles, marked 'press,' was targeted, and it was also clear that the group stationed next to it was journalists."

RSF said that on October 13, while journalists were covering the exchange of fire between Hezbollah forces and the Israeli army, "two strikes of different intensity, about thirty seconds apart, hit the exact spot where seven journalists were standing."

Based on the ballistic analysis held by RSF, the shots came from the east of where the journalists were standing, from the direction of the Israeli-side border.

The international non-profit organization added that it is doubtful that the journalists were mistaken for combatants, as they were wearing helmets and bullet-proof waistcoats marked "press." 

Although there was a vehicle marked "press" close to the journalists, the first strike targeted the journalists, which resulted in the death of Abdallah and seriously injured Agence France-Presse (AFP) correspondent Christina Assi.

In addition, RSF reported that the second, "more powerful strike, with a payload of more than 3 kg TNT equivalent according to RSF's ballistic expertise," strike blew up the Al Jazeera vehicle and injured several journalists, including Al Jazeera journalists Carmen Joukhadar and Elie Brakhya, as well as their AFP colleague Dylan Collins.

According to Edmond Sassine, an LBCI journalist, an Israeli Apache helicopter flew over the area just moments before the tragic incident. Sassine was approximately a hundred meters away from his colleagues from Reuters, Al Jazeera, and AFP.

Here is the full video: