Assaf Abu Rahhal
| Assaf Abu Rahhal | |
|---|---|
| Born | 18 December 1955 Kfeir, Lebanon |
| Died | 3 August 2010 (aged 54) Adaisseh, Lebanon |
| Cause of death | Military fire |
| Resting place | Kfeir, Lebanon |
| Nationality | Lebanese |
| Occupation | Journalist |
| Employer | Al-Akhbar |
| Home town | Kfeir, Lebanon |
Assaf Abu Rahhal (Arabic: عساف أبو رحال; 18 December 1955 – 3 August 2010) was a veteran Lebanese journalist who was killed by the Israeli Defense Forces during the 2010 Israel–Lebanon border clash., in which an Israeli reserve lieutenant colonel was killed and a captain was shot and injured by Lebanese sniper fire.
According to Reporters Without Borders, Abu Rahhal was the first Lebanese journalist killed since 2006 when Lebanese and Israeli forces clashed. He was one of five people to die in the incident, which received international attention and scrutiny, but he was the only journalist killed.
Assaf Abu Rahhal was a native of Kfeir, Hasbaya District, Lebanon. He was married and a father of three. He died in Adaisseh, Lebanon, while reporting for his newspaper, as a result of Israeli military fire. Final services were held at Saint George Roman Orthodox Church in Kfeir for the deceased. The village of Adaisseh commemorated Abu Rahhal's death on the second anniversary of his death.
Abu Rahhal worked for the Al Akhbar daily newspaper for four years where he was covering southern Lebanon. Before that he was a journalist with Al-Mustaqbal, an Arabic daily newspaper, and he sometimes wrote for Shu’un Janoubiah magazine.
The dispute began around noon on 3 August 2010 when Israeli forces began to dig up a tree at the border between Misgav Am, Israel and Adaisseh, Lebanon. The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon had given the Israelis permission to do the maintenance. The Lebanese claimed the Israelis had crossed border in conducting this work. The Israelis disputed this claim, and the UN Peacekeeping force also dismissed the border crossing claim. Lebanese sniper fire ensued. Both sides agree that the Lebanese issued a verbal warning prior to the shooting and the Israelis stood their ground and claimed they were on Israeli territory. After an Israeli reserve lieutenant colonel was killed and a captain was shot and injured, the Israelis responded to the sniper fire from the Lebanese side of the border. UN forces intervened to bring a halt to the armed conflict. Reporters Without Borders said the Israelis wanted to install a surveillance camera on the site of the tree. This was the first armed incident since 2006 Lebanon War and a violation of the UN Resolution 1701 to prevent further conflict.
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