Four people, including two journalists, have been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon, local media say, as exchanges of fire intensify along the border.
Lebanon’s prime minister condemned the “attack” in the village of Tayr Harfa that killed an Al Mayadeen TV reporter and cameraman along with another man.
An elderly woman was also reportedly killed in Kfarkela, to the east.
The Israeli military has not commented. Earlier, it said aircraft had struck “terrorist cells” in the border area.
It also said they had hit targets belonging to the Lebanese group, Hezbollah, which has repeatedly fired missiles and mortar shells across the border since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip six weeks ago.
Al Mayadeen, a Beirut-based Arabic TV channel, said its reporter, Farah Omar, and cameraman, Rabih al-Maamari, were “deliberately targeted” as they reported from Tayr Harfa, a village about 2km (1.2 miles) from the border.
“An Israeli warplane fired two rockets on Farah and Rabih’s location,” it said.
“Farah and Rabih had just ended a live broadcast at 10 AM (08:00 GMT), giving updates on the latest Israeli bombardment in South Lebanon.”
A picture posted on social media appeared to show the journalists’ bodies on the ground near a burning TV camera mounted on a tripod.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA) said another civilian, whom it named as Hussein Aqeel, was killed in what would appear to be the third attack on journalists working in southern Lebanon since the start of the war. Al-Mayadeen director, Ghassan bin Jiddo, said Mr Aqeel was a “contributor”.
“This attack proves once again that there are no limits to Israeli crimes, and that its only goal is to silence the media that exposes its crimes and attacks,” Lebanese Prime Minister, Nabjib Mikati, said.
A fourth person, who NNA identified as 80-year-old Laiqa Sarhan, was killed and several family members were wounded in a strike on a village further east along the border, the aftermath of which was witnessed by a BBC team.
Their house in Kfarkela was hit and badly damaged. Fire fighters from local civil defence units rushed to the scene to put out the blaze, as ambulances took the wounded family members, including children, to hospital. —BBC
