Correspondent Zeinab Faraj was seriously wounded earlier this week in an IDF strike that killed reporter Amal Khalil<\/p>\n
Wounded Lebanese journalist Zeinab Faraj has described the Israeli strike that killed her colleague Amal Khalil, prompting Beirut to accuse West Jerusalem of war crimes.
\nIn an interview filmed from her hospital bed, Faraj broke down in tears as she recounted the ordeal and her final moments with Khalil.
\nOn Wednesday, Khalil and Faraj were driving through the southern village of al-Tiri when an Israeli drone struck a car ahead of them.
\n\u201cCompletely silently, a missile hit that car. Amal screamed and abruptly turned to the side of the road. We got out of the car and covered under an entrance of some garage,\u201d Faraj told Lebanese Al-Afdal News. Adding that Israeli aircraft were circling overhead along with drones before another missile struck Khalil\u2019s car. Khalil was wounded by shrapnel, and as the vehicle caught fire, her back began burning as she shielded Faraj.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe told me: \u2018Zeinab, I\u2019m burning!\u2019 I grabbed her by her jacket and pulled her toward me,\u201d she recalled. \u201cI couldn\u2019t endure it anymore, I was starting to burn too\u2026 I broke the garage door, and Amal and I started crawling inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Lebanon accuses Israel of war crimes after another journalist killed<\/p>\n
The pair later hid in a bathroom. Faraj said time passed before she nodded off, with Khalil beside her. \u201cWe both lost hope… I woke up just as a missile was coming straight down at us and all I remember is the last moment I saw Amal \u2013 when I realized Amal was gone,\u201d she said.
\nColleagues said both were wearing gear clearly marked as press. Emergency workers pulled Faraj, who was seriously wounded, from the rubble, but efforts to reach Khalil were delayed after Israeli forces reportedly fired on rescue teams. Her body was recovered hours later.
\nThe strike came despite a ceasefire reached earlier this month, with Israeli military still operating in occupied parts of southern Lebanon and reserving the right to attack what it labels threats.
\nLebanese President Joseph Aoun accused Israel of the \u201cdeliberate and consistent targeting of journalists\u201d to \u201cconceal the truth of its aggressive acts against Lebanon,\u201d while Prime Minister Nawaf Salam called the attack a \u201cwar crime.\u201d<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
\u2018Deliberate attack\u2019: RT correspondent recounts surviving Israeli airstrike (VIDEO)<\/p>\n
Khalil\u2019s death also drew condemnation abroad. Spanish authorities slammed\u00a0the attack; Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei said\u00a0killing journalists was \u201cpart of a ruthless campaign to eradicate populations and seize land in pursuit of a colonial agenda\u201d by Israel. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called it a \u201cbrutal killing\u201d with \u201cno justification.\u201d
\nThe Israel Defense Forces denied targeting journalists or rescue workers and said that the incident was under review.
\nKhalil is the ninth journalist killed by Israel\u00a0in Lebanon since US-Israeli strikes on Iran reignited the conflict, according to Lebanese authorities. Previously, a March 28 IDF strike on a marked press car killed Al-Manar correspondent Ali Shoeib, whom Israel claimed was a Hezbollah operative without evidence. RT correspondent Steve Sweeney and cameraman Ali Rida Sbeity were also targeted on March 19, but survived with minor injuries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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