The Israel-Lebanon Framework Agreement, which was signed in Washington, USA, on 26 June 2026, contains controversial provisions that shield Israel from accountability for war crimes against journalists and citizens, says the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today.
According to IFJ information today, the world’s largest organisation of journalists joins its affiliate, the Union of Journalists in Lebanon (UJL), in denouncing an agreement that ignores the rights of the victims and in calling for Israel to be held accountable for war crimes against journalists.
Mourners hold the portraits of Lebanese journalist Amal Khalil during her funeral procession in Bissariye town, south of Sidon on April 23, 2026. Lebanon’s leaders accused Israel on April 23 of committing a war crime, after an airstrike killed Khalil in the country’s south, with the Israeli army saying it was reviewing the incident. MAHMOUD ZAYYAT / AFP
The Israel-Lebanon Framework Agreement is a 14-point political framework aimed at ending the conflict between Israel and Lebanon, ensuring ‘the sovereignty and security of both countries’ and establishing ‘peaceful neighbourly relations between the two countries’.
One of the controversial provisions lies in point 13, which explicitly calls on Israel and Lebanon to ‘take good faith measures that demonstrate positive intent, including the cessation of all hostile or adverse actions in international political or legal fora, and pledge to work towards the search for and return of remains and the release of detainees’.
The IFJ has raised concerns about the wording of this clause, arguing that it would prevent Lebanon from bringing Israel to international tribunals for violating international laws during the war, particularly through the direct targeting of civilians and journalists. The Federation argues that seeking accountability for war crimes should not be considered as a ‘hostile’ act in accordance with the framework agreement and that victims’ rights to justice and reparations should not be compromised by such an agreement.
In a post published on Facebook, the President of the UJL, Elsy Moufarrej, said: ‘The Lebanese government has conceded a right that is not its right: the right of the victims to pursue and hold accountable. This right does not belong to the State. This is the right of the people who lost their loved ones, whose homes and memories were destroyed. This is the right of those who performed their duties despite the dangers, like journalists and emergency medical workers.’
IFJ President Zuliana Lainez said: ‘Israel must be held accountable for killing those who have been reporting this war from Lebanon and Lebanon cannot concede this right. Together with our affiliate, we will continue to hold Israel responsible for killing journalists and infringing international laws.’