Lebanon: why were rescuers affected?

Published on April 21, 2026 at 21:22 – Updated on April 21, 2026 at 21:29

The war between Israel and the Hezbollah movement has taken a heavy toll on Lebanon. 2,454 deaths since March 2. Among the civilians killed, the rescuers are paying a heavy price. Our teams have tried to understand why rescuers have also been targeted.

This text corresponds to a part of the transcription of the above report. Click on the video to watch it in full.

These images, filmed by one of our teams, have circled the globe. A father discovers that his son, a rescuer, has just been killed. Here, the scooter on which Joud, 16 years old, was riding with another rescuer, also killed by an Israeli drone. British, Canadian, and numerous social media platforms have picked up our report to tell this tragedy. We wanted to understand how this 16-year-old boy, pictured here with his father, was killed. With this grieving man, we return to the scene of the strike. It’s a street in the heart of Nabatiyeh, a pro-Iranian Hezbollah stronghold.

This father explains that his son is not a fighter, but a rescuer. “My son has never been involved in military or political activities. Never in his life. The Israelis always give us false explanations. They claim we help transport weapons. And you followed us on a mission. None of our vehicles, nor scooters, carry weapons,” says Mohammad Sleiman, Joud Sleiman’s father.

We spoke with the Israeli army to get their version of events. They confirm that yes, operations against terrorists were ongoing that day in that city and that if rescuers were killed, they regret it and add… “The strike did not target individuals identified as belonging to a medical team.”

However, in our footage, here is the bulletproof vest of one of the two young men. A necessity for rescuers to wear in a war zone, like us journalists. With this logo on their back, Joud and Ali were clearly identifiable as rescuers. In this ambulance, lies the body of the second young man killed, wearing the blue pants of the Nabatiyeh teams. Two hours before the strike, our team was filming Joud in uniform at the rescue command center. And his friend, Ali Jaber, 20 years old, is also photographed here on another day, wearing his uniform. Now, a photo of the two young men adorns the walls of this rescue center, which, according to our sources, is not funded by Hezbollah. “When they died, my guys had this poster made. It’s now the most precious thing we have here,” declares Mohammad Sleiman.

Israel’s army, in their response, acknowledge hitting the scooter but do not explain why. They also claim to have their own images of the scene but have not provided them despite our requests. According to the army’s images: “a vehicle is visible. Passing in front of the targeted scooter, followed by another vehicle, the two cars collide”.

Israel argues that the two rescuers killed may have been hit during this collision. However, in our footage, there is no sign of two other vehicles colliding near the scooter. These images were captured only three minutes after the explosion. The two young men were indeed killed on their scooter.

Finally, the Israeli state tells us this. “The Israeli army respects and defends the special protection afforded to medical personnel, in accordance with international law.” The Israeli army therefore asks not to target medical personnel in this southern region of Lebanon.

Yet, dated April 15, these images show the result of successive Israeli strikes on several ambulances. These men, wounded, are being taken care of by other rescuers, but they are hit by another strike. Four rescuers killed that day, including one belonging to Joud’s father’s team. These rescuers mourn Medhi, 31 years old, a father. This rescuer was present during the ambulance strikes.

“The Israelis fired at the first car, then the second, the third, and we were in the fourth. Four ambulances hit at the same time, and for what reason?”, questions Mehdi Salloum, a rescuer from Nabatiyeh. We witnessed at least a second attack on Nabatiyeh’s rescuers. We follow them on a mission. After an Israeli missile strike, it’s a race to reach the victims. But, seven minutes after our arrival and the rescuers’, a second bombardment. We clearly hear artillery strikes. They hit within the perimeter of the search area. Third. Then fourth attack. The rescuers flee. So do we.

According to Lebanese authorities, 100 rescuers and medical personnel have been killed since the start of this war.