Israeli strike kills three journalists in south Lebanon

An Israeli strike killed at least three journalists and wounded several others as they slept in guesthouses in southern Lebanon on Friday, Lebanon’s health ministry said, in what Beirut declared a war crime.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there was an urgency to get a diplomatic resolution to the conflict in Lebanon, a day after he said Washington did not want to see a protracted campaign there by its ally Israel, Reuters reported.

Israel launched its major offensive in Lebanon a month ago, saying it was targeting the heavily armed, Iran-backed Hezbollah to secure the return home of tens of thousands of Israelis evacuated from the north due to cross-border rocket attacks.

Beirut authorities say the offensive has killed more than 2,500 people and displaced more than 1.2 million people, the majority of them over the last month, creating a humanitarian crisis.

“We have a sense of real urgency in getting to a diplomatic resolution and the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, such that there can be real security along border between Israel and Lebanon,” Blinken said in London.

He said it was important so “people at both sides of the border can have the confidence to… return to their homes”.

The journalists killed were camera operator Ghassan Najjar and engineer Mohamed Reda of the pro-Iranian news outlet Al-Mayadeen and camera operator Wissam Qassem, who worked for Hezbollah’s Al-Manar, the outlets said in separate statements.

They had been staying in the southern town of Hasbaya when it was hit around 3 a.m. (midnight GMT). The town, inhabited by both Muslims and Christians, had not previously been targeted.

It was the deadliest attack on media in Lebanon since hostilities erupted between Israel and Hezbollah just over a year ago, prompted by the Gaza war.

There was no immediate comment from Israel, which in general denies deliberately attacking journalists.