French Judiciary Launches Probe into 2024 Beirut Airstrike

Two French judges have initiated a judicial investigation into a suspected war crime related to an Israeli air strike on a residential building in Beirut. The attack, which occurred in November 2024, resulted in the death of seven civilians, including the parents of Franco-Lebanese artist Ali Cherri. This development represents the first instance where an alleged crime by the Israeli army in Lebanon has been examined by the French judiciary since its military operations began in October 2023.

The probe was triggered by a complaint filed in April by Cherri and the International Federation for Human Rights, known as FIDH. Clemence Bectarte, Cherri's lawyer, confirmed the significance of the move in a statement released by FIDH. She noted that, to their knowledge, this is the very first judicial investigation opened into offenses committed by the Israeli military in Lebanon since the start of the conflict. The inquiry aims to establish the facts surrounding the bombing and determine responsibility.

Ali Cherri expressed the personal and broader significance of the proceedings in an interview with AFP. He stated that he has been fighting for almost two years to ensure the death of his parents and five other civilians does not go unpunished. While acknowledging that the road to justice remains long and difficult, he described the opening of the investigation as a major step forward. Cherri emphasized that the case is not just about his personal loss but also about the dignity of all civilian victims and breaking the impunity enjoyed by officials responsible for attacks in Lebanon and Palestine.

The incident under investigation took place on 27 November 2024, just hours before a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah came into effect. At approximately 5:30 pm, Israeli forces conducted an airstrike on a 12-storey residential building in the Noueiri district of Beirut. The explosion destroyed three floors of the structure and killed seven civilians. This timing, roughly ten and a half hours before the truce began, has been a focal point of the subsequent inquiries.

The French investigation relies heavily on research conducted by Amnesty International and the investigative group Forensic Architecture. In a report published in April, Amnesty International stated that its researchers found no evidence of a military target in the vicinity of the residential building at the time of the strike. The organization also reported finding evidence of a US-manufactured GBU-39 precision-guided bomb at the site. Based on these findings, Amnesty concluded there was a reasonable basis to suspect a breach of international humanitarian law and called for the strike to be investigated as a possible war crime.

The French National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office, which oversees war crimes matters, requested the opening of judicial investigations in September. According to an AFP source close to the case, prosecutors identified serious and consistent indications that the alleged offenses had been committed. The investigation was formally opened based on allegations that the attack was deliberately directed at civilian property, an act that can constitute a war crime under French law.

The scope of the French proceedings is limited due to jurisdictional rules. Because Cherri holds both French and Lebanese nationality, the courts can focus on the bombing of his specific apartment. FIDH explained that French courts lack jurisdiction over the events leading to the deaths of non-French nationals. Consequently, Cherri was unable to file a complaint for homicide regarding his parents' deaths. Instead, the legal focus remains on the alleged deliberate attack on civilian property.

This case is part of a broader trend in French legal action concerning the conflict. The National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office has also opened preliminary investigations into allegations of torture and war crimes related to the interception of humanitarian flotillas heading to Gaza in 2025 and 2026. Additionally, at the end of 2025, the prosecutor's office asked a Paris investigating judge to open a war crimes investigation into the deaths of two French children in an Israeli bombing in Gaza in October 2023.

Despite the expansion of these legal efforts, sources close to the cases indicated that the prosecutors have ruled out charges of genocide and crimes against humanity. The current Beirut investigation serves as a significant test for the application of universal jurisdiction in France regarding the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.