France Probes Israeli Airstrike That Killed Artist’s Parents — SkimNews
Get the Culture newsletter
Daily culture — film, music, books, the trends and ideas worth your attention. Free.
- French War Crimes Unit opened a judicial investigation into an Israeli bombing of a residential building in Beirut on November 26, 2024, which killed seven civilians, including the parents of Franco-Lebanese artist Ali Cherri.
- Ali Cherri and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) filed a formal complaint six months prior, leading to the appointment of two investigating judges to examine the strike as a potential war crime.
- Mahmoud Naim Cherri and Nadira Hayek, Cherri’s parents, and domestic worker Birki Negesa were among the seven civilians killed when three floors of the apartment building were destroyed hours before a ceasefire was to take effect.
- Clémence Bectarte, lawyer and coordinator of FIDH Litigation Action Group, stated this is the first judicial investigation into alleged crimes by the Israeli army in Lebanon since October 2023, calling the bombing a war crime.
- Israeli military conducted a campaign in Lebanon starting September 2024 involving aerial bombardments and ground invasion, killing over 4,000 and displacing one million, amid escalating tensions with Hezbollah following the October 7 Hamas attacks.
Why it matters: The investigation gives French judicial reach into a narrow but symbolic act of accountability, as Cherri’s dual nationality enables scrutiny of an attack that killed non-French nationals. It sets a precedent for using national jurisdiction to probe alleged war crimes in Lebanon, despite limited legal scope.
Ask SkimNews
