The following article is by the Anglo-Lebanese journalist and broadcaster Mr Jaafar el-Ahmar. Jaafar is Head of the Next Century Foundation´s operations in the United Kingdom. He is a close friend of Ms Amal Khalil, the Lebanese journalist assassinated this week by the IDF.
At last, Israel carried out its threats against my dear friend, journalist Amal Khalil, assassinating her on Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in an airstrike while she was performing her journalistic duties in the town of Tayri in South Lebanon. Her colleague, Zeinab Faraj, was also injured in the attack — another assault on journalists by the Israeli military, in blatant violation of all international laws and conventions. Amal’s assassination came after she had received several threats from the Israel´s Mossad, ranging from demands that she stop reporting from the south to explicit warnings to leave Lebanon — or face death.
When the Witness Is Killed Because the Truth Annoys the Killer
Amal Khalil was not just a field reporter. She was a daughter of the South—someone who knew its roads, its homes, its people, and its pain. As the South Lebanon correspondent for the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar, she was among the most active journalists covering Israel´s attacks, and a key reference for many colleagues due to her deep familiarity with the region, having lived in her hometown of Baysariyeh in the Sidon district.
She knew her work was dangerous, but she believed that telling the truth was a duty that could not be abandoned.
A year earlier, she survived gunfire in the Wazzani area. Months later, Israel´s forces incited against her after a video circulated showing her feeding hungry cats among the rubble in the town of Ansariyeh. That brief moment revealed much about her spirit: a heart overflowing with compassion for every vulnerable creature. She would stop to pet stray dogs and leave food for the cats that waited for her each morning. She treated them like small friends, offering them safety and warmth that reflected her gentle soul.
On the day she was killed, Amal was traveling with photographer Zeinab Faraj along the Hadatha–Tayri–Bint Jbeil road to report on the aftermath of a previous Israeli strike. Journalists know this road well — and know how quickly it can turn into a trap.
As their car moved along the route, an Israeli aircraft struck a vehicle driving beside them, killing its passengers. Amal and Zeinab stopped, got out of their car, and took shelter near a tree. But the second strike came too quickly. They ran toward a nearby building for cover, only for a third airstrike to hit the structure directly, causing it to collapse on top of them.
Zeinab miraculously survived and was taken to Tebnin Hospital, where she underwent surgery for head and leg injuries. Amal, however, remained trapped beneath the rubble.
Israel did not stop at killing her. It prevented the emergency rescue teams from reaching her by repeatedly targeting the area and firing at ambulances. It took more than four hours of coordination between the Lebanese Army, UNIFIL, and the U.S.-led “mechanism” before rescue teams were allowed to approach. By the time they reached her, Amal had passed away.
Members of the emergency rescue teams recounted that Amal had remained in contact with them after the first strike and that her last words before the line went dead were:
“I’m waiting for the Lebanese Army to come save us.”
She waited for help. But the killer was faster.
Prior Threats: When Truth Becomes a Crime
Amal’s assassination was not random. She had received direct threats from Israel´s Mossad on her phone.
In the fall of 2024, she received a chilling message: “Why don’t you travel to Qatar where your brother lives? Why do you want the head separated from the body?”
She knew the threat was serious. But she was clearer than her fear: “They want to stop me from doing my job. Am I supposed to surrender.
Amal did not surrender. She paid with her life.
Amal’s killing closely resembles the assassination of Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh on May 11, 2022, who was shot by Israel´s forces despite wearing a press vest. The killer is the same. The method is the same: silence the witness.
Israel’s Targeting of Journalists: A Bloody Record
Amal’s assassination is not an isolated incident but part of a long chain of attacks on journalists in Lebanon since October 7, 2023:
- 15 journalists have been killed in Lebanon due to Israel´s attacks since October 7, 2023-
- 18 journalists have been injured during the same period.
- On March 28, 2026, journalists Ali Shueib and Fatima Ftouni, along with her photographer brother, were killed in an airstrike near Jezzine.
- On March 18, 2026, journalist Mohammad Cherri and his wife were killed when an Israeli strike hit their home in the Zoqaq al-Blat neighborhood of Beirut.
These attacks were accompanied by a wide range of violations documented by field and human rights reports, including:
- Systematic demolition of homes in numerous southern villages using heavy bulldozers and massive explosions heard across the region.
- A photo from the town of Debel showing an Israeli soldier smashing the head of a statue of Jesus Christ after toppling it from its cross—an act that sparked global outrage and was widely condemned as an assault on sacred religious symbols.(1)
- Testimonies published by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, in which soldiers and field commanders admitted to widespread looting of civilian property in southern villages, including motorcycles, televisions, artwork, and household furniture—practices the newspaper said the military leadership was aware of. (2)
- Israel’s complete failure to abide by the ceasefire agreement signed on November 27, 2024, continuing military operations in the South, Beirut’s southern suburbs, and the Bekaa Valley, resulting in hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries.
This is not merely a military conflict. It is a conflict over narrative. And the journalist is the bearer of that narrative. That is why they are targeted.
When the Witness Is Gone but the Light Remains
Amal’s true role was to be a witness to the truth—to Israel´s attacks, to the resilience of the people, to the exhaustion and joy and sorrow of the South. A witness to the fact that there is something on this land worth the sacrifices.
She was not just a colleague. She was a luminous soul who practiced her profession with integrity, humility, and unwavering commitment. Self made and modest, she carved her path wih quiet strength and a conscience that never compromised. And she lived up to her name — Amal, “hope” — spreading it wherever she went.
The moment I learned that Amal had been targeted on Wednesday afternoon, an instinctive fear gripped me. I called her immediately, then sent message after message, hoping for even the briefest reply. But silence met every attempt. For the first time, Amal did not answer my calls or respond to my texts, and a terrible dread began to settle in my chest. My last message to her, sent at 3:24 p.m., read simply: “Our hearts are with you ❤️❤️❤️❤️” — a prayer more than a reassurance, written while hoping against hope that she would still see it.
Amal, your absence is a pain that does not fade, and the echo of your presence still fills the South with tr
uth and courage. You were hope walking among people, writing truth with a steady hand and a heart that never wavered. May your death awaken the world to the injustice Lebanon endures and open a window toward the peace this small country desperately needs.
A promise: you and your fellow fallen journalists will remain alive in our hearts and in the memory of the
profession you loved until your final breath.
2- https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israeli-soldiers-looting-homes-lebanon-large-scale-report-says
