Shell explodes behind reporter broadcasting frontline fighting live in Lebanon, suggesting targeted Israeli strike [Video]

According to The Financial News, video has emerged showing an IDF shell landing just behind a reporter from Russia’s state media while he was broadcasting the war live from Lebanon.
On the 19th (local time), Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported that a video was released of a reporter from Ruptly, the video news agency under Russia’s state broadcaster RT, covering the fighting when an explosion occurred only a few meters behind him.
In the footage, the reporter is wearing a bulletproof vest marked with the word "PRESS," identifying him as a journalist, while delivering a live report. He suddenly notices something, stops speaking with a startled expression, and dives forward to the ground; moments later, a massive explosion erupts behind him.
The camera, knocked over by the incoming shell, captures thick black smoke rising and debris flying through the air. The reporter’s shocked reaction, including an expletive, is also clearly heard in the recording.
Ruptly stated on Telegram, "One reporter and one cameraman were injured in an Israeli attack while reporting from southern Lebanon," adding, "Both are conscious and receiving treatment in hospital."
Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, said, "Given that 200 journalists have been killed in the Gaza Strip, it is impossible to call today’s incident a coincidence," and claimed, "It was a missile fired by the Israel Defense Forces."
Zakharova argued, "The broadcast crew’s clothing was clearly marked with the word 'PRESS,' and they were carrying only a camera and a microphone. There were no military facilities at the site of the airstrike," adding, "All of these circumstances indicate that this attack on journalists was deliberate and that they were targeted. It is a grave violation of international law."
In response, the Russian Foreign Ministry is expected to summon the Israeli ambassador in Moscow in the near future. The IDF, however, maintains that the strike was part of a series of attacks in recent days targeting a bridge over the Litani River in Lebanon that Hezbollah has used for terrorist activities and weapons transfers.
Meanwhile, according to a report released last month by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), 129 journalists and media workers were killed worldwide last year, the highest number on record, and two-thirds of them were killed by Israel.
bng@fnnews.com Kim Hee-sun Reporter