Shortly before midday on Wednesday, December 4th, 2024, the journalist Anas al-Kharbatli was killed in an airstrike in Morek in the northern Hama countryside in Syria. Local sources alleged that the strikes were carried out by Russian and/or Syrian regime forces.

Journalist Ahmed Al-Shbli reported the death of Anas Aa-Kharbatli in his Twitter/X account @Ahmad_1alshble at 12:04 PM, marking it as “urgent.” Al-Kharbatli, who was 32, had been working for the German News Agency covering the attacks by the Syrian regime and Russia on civilians. Women Journalists Without Borders (@WJWCorg) posted on Twitter/X that other photojournalists were present at the location at the time of the incident. The post also included a photo of al-Kharbatli standing in front of a damaged building whilst holding a camera and dressed in protective clothing that clearly identified that he was a journalist. He was a young man with short, dark hair, deep-set dark eyes, and a short, trimmed beard.

@Syr_television reported on Twitter/X that Al-Kharbatli was from Damascus, although the funeral took place in Idlib. Twitter/X user @abualisar18 uploaded an image from the funeral. The post showed seven men of a similar age standing over Al-Kharbatli’s cadaver bag, expressing heartfelt emotion and grief. The end of the bag with the face opening appeared to be unzipped. This was confirmed by a separate post on Twitter/X by @QAlhadaht88331 that showed a different angle. In the post by @abualisar18, two of the men were wearing press uniforms, whilst al-Kharbatli’s blood-stained uniform had been placed on top of the bag, blocking the view. There were also at least three other individuals in the background of the photo, who appeared to be waiting to pay their respects. In a separate post that utilised the same photo, @Omar_Madiniah tweeted that al-Kharbatli was a colleague who was killed in a Russian airstrike.

Ahmad Rahal, on Facebook, also posted that al-Kharbatli was a ‘dear colleague and friend’. A series of photos of the pair was included in the post. The first was of them riding a moped or motorcycle. Both were wearing protective press uniforms. Al-Kharbatli was driving with Rahal on the back, smiling into the camera as they moved past a severely damaged building in the countryside. The second image of the pair appears to have been taken at a similar time. This time, the pair was standing in front of another building wearing their press uniforms. The third also shows the pair standing together by a road, with Rahal broadly smiling. The fourth photo was just of al-Kharbatli. He was equipped with his typical press uniform and camera, this time with a small red bag as he paused for the photo. The fifth photo was a selfie with six other individuals eating a meal. Everyone seen in the photo looks pleased to be in each other’s company, with Rahal as the photographer. The final four photos all depicted the pair in various work environments with fellow members of the press. They were all wearing substantial amounts of protective equipment and identifying marks. Frequently, Rahal is the taker of the photos, and the number of other participants ranged from just al-Kharbatli to seven others.

On social media, there was an outpouring of tributes to the journalist. @galyarahal wrote that ‘Death does not do justice to the truth’ and ‘when a journalist is martyred in the battlefields, a page of life is turned, and a voice that stood up to injustice is assassinated’. The author also wished, ‘May God have mercy on you and patience for your mother’s heart’.

@Hturkmenis also paid tribute to al-Kharbatli, asking that ‘God [] accept him’ and describing him as a ‘good media professional’. The post also included two photos. The first was a photo of al-Kharbatli sitting down in front of a damaged building, holding a camera and wearing scuffed jeans from the demanding work environment and a navy jumper. The second was a photo of al-Kharbatli with three other men. One holds a camera whilst the other has a protective vest issued to members of the media. The group looks fairly jovial in the photo with their arms around each other. They were all of a similar age.

@Syriatvnews tweeted a video that showed the funeral of al-Kharbatli. The video depicted the same men shown in previous photographs. One man, on the left of the video, started to make a profound speech as others struggled to hold back their emotions. There is a large gathering with Ahmad Rahal present, as were many of al-Kharbatli’s colleagues from images in Rahal’s tribute. Scores of men stepped forward to pay their respects, with many struggling to hold back their tears. Multiple prayers and passionate speeches were made by those present before al-Kharbatli was carried by funeral bearers. @Syrianewsag also uploaded photos on Twitter/X from the ceremony that showed a large turnout and procession to the burial site.

The tributes continued on Facebook, with Sara al-Bettar posting that al-Kharbatli had won international photography awards and rejected the opportunity to leave Syria to live comfortably in ‘any country.’ Sara al-Bettar also posted that al-Kharbatli had ‘the most beautiful eyes in Al-Muharrir’. Finally, the post included two photos, one of which was the widely shared image of al-Kharbatli standing in front of a damaged building dressed in protective clothing. The second is a blurred still from video footage uploaded on Twitter/X by @ibnqasuoon, which showed a wounded al-Kharbatli lying on the floor. Below his waist is blurred out, suggesting that the injuries he received were located there.

@ibnqasuoon’s video on Twitter/X is 1 minute and 59 seconds. The start showed a military plane flying above the region before turning in the direction of the video’s author: ‘Karam Al-Khatin’. Next, the video cuts to the videographer crouching in the countryside with rubble and dirt as smoke rises in several locations close by. Another individual holding a camera and in a brown coat appears as the pair moves towards a vehicle parked on a road. They quickly pass the vehicle, briefly stopping whilst shouting. In the background, you can hear the continued noise of aircraft as the individual runs in search of al-Kharbatli. The video concluded with the finding of a stricken al-Kharbatli lying face down on the ground, with significant areas of the footage blurred. Al-Kharbatli is still seen to be alive, holding his camera and moving his head upwards in response to the movement towards him.

In his tributary post, Ahmad Rahal attributed the belligerence to the Syrian regime. Elsewhere, @Ahmad_1alshble (Twitter/X) attributed the attack to the Syrian regime. However, @Wakaala al furat (Facebook) attributed the attack to Russian aircraft. Furthermore, pro-Russian accounts such as @almary434 and @SHB942 tweeted that joint Russian-Syrian raids killed ‘a number of terrorist militants in Morek’. @SHB942’s post showed smoke rising in the distance from an urban environment. Thus, the lack of clarity on the belligerents has led to it being graded as ‘contested.’