French War Crimes Unit Opens Investigation Into Beirut Strike That Killed Artist Ali Cherri's Parents
France's War Crimes Unit has opened a judicial investigation into the Israeli army's bombing of a residential building in Beirut, according to Deadline. Seven civilians died in the strike, including the parents of Franco-Lebanese artist Ali Cherri.
The strike hit the building on 26 November 2024, a few hours before a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah was due to take effect. It destroyed three floors of the apartment block. Among the dead were Mahmoud Naim Cherri, 88, and Nadira Hayek, 78, the father and mother of Ali Cherri, according to Amnesty International. Birki Negesa, a domestic worker employed by the couple, was also killed.
Ali Cherri holds both French and Lebanese nationality. He is an artist, and he has spent the past two years trying to make sure the strike that killed his parents does not go unpunished, as 20 Minutes reported.
The route to France's courts began in April. On 2 April 2026, Ali Cherri and the Paris-based International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) announced in Paris that they had filed a war crimes complaint over the bombing, as Le Monde reported. The complaint argues that the bombing of a civilian building could amount to a war crime under French criminal law.
Now the case has reached the investigation stage. Two investigating judges from the War Crimes Unit have been appointed to look into the November 2024 strike. In a statement, FIDH said the judicial investigation aims to shed full light on the bombing, which it described as a strike on a residential building in Beirut on 26 November 2024 (FIDH).
An investigation of this kind is a slow process. Judges gather evidence and decide whether a case goes to trial, and the process can take years. For now, the family's complaint has moved from a filing to a formal inquiry, with judges assigned to the case.
The story is also a personal one for a man who makes art. Ali Cherri has now taken his parents' deaths into a courtroom, a step that many families in similar cases never reach.
