Russia Calls On Israel To Investigate Wounding Of RT Journalists In Lebanon

Israel’s ambassador to Russia, Oded Yosef, was summoned for a reprimand meeting at the Foreign Ministry in Moscow following the Israeli strike in southern Lebanon, in which Russian RT network reporter Steve Sweeney and his cameraman Ali Reda were injured.

The incident occurred on Thursday when RT Russian network correspondent Steve Sweeney and his cameraman Ali Reida were injured in an Israeli attack while filming in southern Lebanon, according to a statement from the network. 

According to RT, an Israeli Air Force jet fired a rocket at the journalists’ car as the film crew was crossing a bridge near a military base. Reida stated that Israeli forces “deliberately attacked” the crew even though they were wearing vests displaying their press credentials.

The dramatic incident was captured on camera – Sweeney himself was in the middle of a report about Nahariya and the rockets fired in its direction when he suddenly appeared surprised, apparently hearing the shell approaching. He managed to duck forward, and the stationary camera recorded a huge explosion that occurred just a few meters from where the reporter and cameraman were standing.

 Dirt and fragments of stone flew everywhere, as Sweeney could be heard cursing from time to time, clearly in shock.

Reida also shared photos of doctors removing shrapnel from Sweeney’s arm. In a separate video, he said that both he and Sweeney are okay, joking that “it turns out that when a missile is flying at you, you can hear it.”

The spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, condemned Israel for the attack and said that attacking journalists wearing press markings “cannot be considered accidental given the killing of two hundred journalists in Gaza.” The network itself stated that “both are conscious and are currently receiving medical treatment at the hospital. They say that shrapnel from the explosion hit their limbs.”