Lebanese Artist Ali Sbeity Confirmed Dead in Israeli Strike

Lebanese Artist Ali Sbeity Killed in Israeli Airstrike

In a tragic development, Lebanese artist Ali Sbeity has been killed in an Israeli airstrike in Kafra, a town located in Southern Lebanon. Local media and the international organization Artists at Risk Connection (ARC) confirmed the news. Sbeity was renowned for his vivid portraits and landscapes capturing the essence of his rural hometown, which he often shared on his Facebook page.

The Beirut-based news outlet Al-Akhbar reported Sbeity’s killing during an Israeli bombing spree that has intensified in Southern Lebanon. ARC’s executive director, Julie Trébault, stated that Sbeity’s death was confirmed by a local partner in Lebanon, and a Facebook comment from a user claiming to be Sbeity’s cousin corroborated the reports.

The resumption of Israeli aerial assaults on Lebanon aligns with recent geopolitical tensions following the assassination of Iran’s former leader Ali Khamenei, instigated by forces backed by the United States. The southern region of Lebanon has suffered significant devastation, displacing over a million people and claiming more than a thousand lives.

On March 19, Israeli warplanes targeted Kafra, but the specific target remains unclear, according to the Lebanese government’s news agency. Al-Akhbar revealed that Sbeity was actively involved in local art exhibitions, school mural projects in Beirut, and engaged in various crafts like olive oil soap production, woodworking, and pottery painting. His artistic influences spanned Iranian, European, and Russian styles.

Julie Trébault emphasized Sbeity’s art as a representation of Southern Lebanon’s living memory, underscoring the loss of resilience, beauty, and peace in conflict zones. She highlighted that Sbeity’s tragic death is indicative of the broader risks that artists and cultural workers face in wartime, threatening their expressions and existence.