The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has condemned the Israeli Defense Forces over the killings of three active journalists in Lebanon who were simply going about their duties reporting the war for their legitimate news organisations.
Consequently, the Rights group said the war crime must be investigated by the International Court of Justice in The Hague Netherlands so the perpetrators are subjected to international criminal justice for such heinous crime of deliberate assassination of media practitioners.
A statement by HURIWA national coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, “call on the government of Israel to stop the incessant killings of journalists whilst they wage wars against their foes.
Onwubiko said the deliberate killings of reporters by the IDF is an intolerable crime which the international community must condemn.
The group further said efforts should be made for the ICJ to investigate the inexplicable killings of Lebanese journalists by the IDF so that those officers directly responsible for this dastardly and cowardly act of crimes against humanity are identified, arrested and prosecuted. We condemn these killings as absolutely appalling, despicable and reprehensible. The claim by the IDF that the journalists killed are part of Hezbollah propaganda unit doesn’t add up. This is pure act of state permitted terrorism and impunity that must never be swept under the carpets.
Three Lebanese journalists were killed in a targeted Israeli strike in southern Lebanon on Saturday, their employers have said.
Ali Shoeib, a reporter for the Hezbollah-affiliated Al Manar TV, was killed in the town of Jezzine alongside reporter Fatima Ftouni and her brother, cameraman Mohamed Ftouni, both from the channel Al Mayadeen, according to the stations.
The strike reportedly hit the journalists’ car just before noon local time (10:00 GMT).
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed it had killed Shoeib, describing him as a “terrorist” from Iranian-backed Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force who had “operated for years under the guise of a journalist”.
The group said it is shocked that journalists have continued to be assassinated during warfare without any provocation even when it is clear that they are non-combatant and therefore must never be targeted.
HURIWA said the killing of journalists are in clear violations of international humanitarian law which provisions provide existing protections under international humanitarian law just as the Rights group said governments around the world are under legal obligation not to kill media practitioners caught up in Conflicts.
HURIWA affirmed that the articles of this international law guarantee that journalists should have the accessible and transparent flow of information, specifically in global armed conflict, acts as both an informative and preventative tool regarding human rights concerns.
