Three journalists were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a building known as the House of Journalists in south-east Lebanon, witnesses told the BBC.
The incident took place in a guest house in a compound in Hasbaya used by more than ten journalists from at least seven media organizations – with a courtyard marked “press”.
The three men worked for broadcasters Al-Manar TV and Al Mayadeen TV, which issued statements praising their slain employees.
Lebanon’s information minister said the attack was deliberate and described it as a “war crime”.
The Israeli military has yet to comment, but has previously denied targeting journalists.
Those killed were camera operator Ghassan Najjar and engineer Mohamed Reda of the Iranian news channel Al Mayadeen, and camera operator Wissam Qassem from the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar.
The Ministry of Health in Lebanon said three others were injured in the explosion.
Five journalists died before Israeli strikes in Lebanon, including Reuters reporter Issam Abdallah.
Pictures broadcast by Al-Jadeed TV – whose reporters were also in the house – show a bombed-out building with a collapsed roof and debris on the floor.
A TV broadcast vehicle flipped over on its side, its satellite dish tangled with cable nearby.
“All official bodies have been told that this house was used as a place for journalists to stay. We have contacted all of them,” said an Al-Jadeed reporter, covered in concrete dust, live-streaming, panting and coughing.
Lebanese journalists reporting on the conflict in the south of the country had to move from nearby Marj’youn to Hasbaya, as the former became more dangerous.
Youmna Fawwaz, a reporter for MTV Lebanon, told the BBC that journalists in the yard were woken up at around 03:00 local time (01:00 BST) by the strike.
He said the ceiling fell on them, and they were surrounded by debris and dust, and the sound of warplanes could be heard.
Each news organization had its own building in the compound, he said, and the building housing Al Mayadeen journalists “disappeared” while al-Manar staff were inside.
Ms. Fawwaz said that it is a media platform that is known by Israel and Hezbollah.
“The airstrike was deliberate. Everyone knew it was there. All the cars were marked by newspapers and TV. Not even a warning was given.”
He added: “They are trying to scare us like they did in Gaza. The Israelis are trying to stop us from covering this story.”
Lebanon’s information minister accused Israel of deliberately targeting journalists, in violation of international law.
“Israel’s enemies are waiting for the journalists’ night break to betray them in their sleep,” writes Ziad Makary on the X site.
“This is a murder, after monitoring and tracking, planning and planning beforehand, as there were 18 journalists representing seven media outlets.”
Hasbaya, eight kilometers from the Israeli border, is inhabited by Muslims, Christians, and Druze and religious minorities.
It has been attacked in its areas in the past weeks, but this was the first strike in this area.
The attack comes as part of an escalating conflict in Lebanon, where Israel has been intensifying airstrikes for weeks – as well as ground attacks on border towns and villages in the south.
Lebanese authorities have recorded more than 1,700 airstrikes across the country in the past three weeks.
Hostilities erupted between Israel and Hezbollah on October 8 last year, a day after a Hamas attack on Israel that killed around 1,200 people. The Iranian-backed armed group has since fired rockets and drones at Israel in what it described as “solidarity” with the Palestinians in Gaza.
About 2,600 people in Lebanon have been killed in the current conflict, according to the country’s health ministry – the most deaths since Israel began its offensive on September 23.
About 60,000 people in northern Israel were displaced by Hezbollah rocket fire, and the Israeli government has announced that repatriation has become a priority.
In southern Lebanon, a satellite image examined by the BBC shows that Israel’s bombing campaign has caused more damage to buildings in two weeks than in a year of cross-border fighting.
The data shows that more than 3,600 buildings in Lebanon appear to have been damaged or destroyed between 2 and 14 October – about 54% of all damage.
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