Sajed al-Hajj Ali

Their life

Sajed al-Hajj Ali was a Lebanese emergency response worker affiliated with the Islamic Health Association, an emergency service organization linked to Hezbollah. According to Lebanese authorities, he took part in humanitarian recovery efforts in southern Lebanon, including clearing damaged roads and helping recover victims from areas affected by conflict. He was killed on 23 June 2026 during a shooting incident near Nabatieh al-Fawqa while engaged in those operations amid a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.

Sajed al-Hajj Ali served with the Islamic Health Association, an emergency response organization operating in southern Lebanon. His work involved supporting rescue and recovery missions in areas damaged by armed conflict, including helping restore access to communities by clearing blocked roads and assisting in the recovery of victims from collapsed structures. On 23 June 2026, he was part of a recovery team working alongside a bulldozer in the al-Deir neighbourhood of Nabatieh al-Fawqa when Israeli troops opened fire. The incident occurred during a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah and became one of the first reported fatal incidents since the truce took effect. Lebanese authorities and Hezbollah described him as carrying out humanitarian recovery work, while the Israeli military maintained that those targeted were Hezbollah operatives who posed a threat. His death highlighted the continued risks faced by emergency and recovery personnel operating in conflict-affected areas of southern Lebanon.

How they died

Sajed al-Hajj Ali died from gunshot wounds after Israeli soldiers fired on the group he was accompanying while they were standing near a bulldozer conducting road-clearing and recovery operations in southern Lebanon during a fragile ceasefire.

Sajed al-Hajj Ali was fatally shot while participating in a recovery mission in Nabatieh al-Fawqa. Lebanese authorities said he was working with the Islamic Health Association, assisting in reopening roads and recovering bodies from areas devastated by recent military operations. While the team was near a bulldozer carrying out these tasks, Israeli troops opened fire, killing him and another worker. Hezbollah described the incident as a violation of the ceasefire. The Israeli military, however, stated that its soldiers engaged individuals it identified as Hezbollah operatives after they entered an Israeli-declared security zone and failed to heed warning shots. Regardless of the differing accounts, Sajed al-Hajj Ali died as a result of gunfire during the incident.

Why we remember them

This record exists so that Sajed al-Hajj Ali, and all who are named in this archive, are never reduced to a number.

References & sources