Injured photojournalist Cristina Assi carried the Olympic Flame as it makes its way to Paris ahead of Friday’s opening ceremony.
Assi, 28, had her leg amputated after an Israeli shell exploded next to her and a group of colleagues in southern Lebanon. Investigations carried out by Reuters and AFP determined the 120mm fin-stabilized shell was fired by an Israeli tank.
Assi’s colleague, Issam Abdallah, was killed in the attack on October 13, 2023, as the assembled media were covering cross-border clashes between the Israel Defense Force (IDF) and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
Assi carried the Olympic Flame in Vincennes, a suburb of Paris, and was joined by AFP videographer Dylan Collins who was also wounded in the Israeli attack. She was cheered on by her colleagues and hundreds of spectators.
“I wish Issam was here to see this. And I wish what happened today was not because we were struck by two rockets,” Assi tells Euro News, struggling to hold back her tears. “I wish I could have honored journalists this way while walking and in my best health.”
Agence France Presse (AFP) Lebanese photographer Christina Assi (C) helped by AFP video journalist Dylan Collins (L), waves after receiving the Olympic flame during the Olympic Torch Relay in Vincennes, ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. #OlympicGames
📸Dimitar DILKOFF #AFP pic.twitter.com/FrIyVzmnv9
— AFP Photo (@AFPphoto) July 21, 2024
On that fateful day last October, the gathered press had chosen a spot on an open hillside where they were clearly visible and all there were wearing press jackets. The group of journalists and photographers had been filming smoke and gunfire for an hour before the first shell hit which killed Abdallah.
A second shell was fired at the group less than a minute later which caused a car owned by Al Jazeera to explode. The two strikes in quick succession make it likely it was targeted.
“The strikes were deliberate and targeted,” AFP said. “They arrived within 37 seconds of each other and just a few meters apart. The journalists were clearly identified as press, away from any military activity. The Israeli army has extensive aerial surveillance resources in the area.”
Direct attacks on journalists who are classed as civilians are illegal under international law. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said the attack should be investigated as a possible war crime.
Image credits: Header photo licensed via Depositphotos.