CAMERA yesterday prompted improved coverage at both ABC and Reuters after the two media outlets erased Hezbollah attacks against Israel, falsely pinning responsibility on Israel, rather than the Iranian-backed terror organization, for dragging Lebanon into war.
In ABC’s March 17 article about the war’s impact on Lebanon,”‘Catastrophic times’: Humanitarian, aid workers reveal grim details as Lebanon crisis worsens,” the lede originally stated: “The latest escalation began after the U.S. and Israel launched strikes,” while failing to specify there or in the entirety of the article that the joint U.S.-Israel strikes were on Iran, not Lebanon.
Given the omission of that basic fact, uninformed readers of the “Lebanon crisis” article would have reasonably understood that the escalation in Lebanon began with the Americans and Israelis striking the Levantine nation.
Worse, at no point did ABC’s Mary Kekatos even mention Hezbollah in her article of more than 1000 words. Given that the “Israeli strikes” noted at the top of the article were in response to Hezbollah’s initial March 1 attack against Israel, and that the Israeli strikes have been targeting Hezbollah specifically, this omission is especially egregious.
Maj. General Shai Kalper, Commander of the Home Front Command, at the site of a Hezbollah rocket attack on a residential neighborhood in Nahariya, northern Israel, March 16 (Screenshot from IDF video)
Moreover, there was no indication in Kekatos’ article that Hezbollah has continued to strike at northern Israel for the past 15 days, leading readers to falsely believe that Israel is striking at Lebanon continuously for no reason, and attacks are one directional only, from Israel to Lebanon.
In response to communication from CAMERA, ABC commendably updated the lede and article to specify that the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes were on Iran. The article was also amended to note Hezbollah’s initial – and ongoing – attacks against Israel. The improved text states:
After the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28 that killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Hezbollah said it launched large-scale rocket and drone attacks on Israel in retaliation for the killing of the supreme leader. The Israel Defense Forces said it began striking back against the attacks, targeting Hezbollah strongholds.
In recent days, the Israeli military’s operations in Lebanon have expanded to limited ground operations as Hezbollah has vowed to continue fighting.
In addition, an editor’s note commendably appended to the bottom of the article alerts readers that changes were made, stating: “Editor’s note: This story has been updated with additional context.”
Reuters, too, had completely erased the fact that Hezbollah was responsible for starting the war in Lebanon by attacking Israel on March 1. Its March 17 article, “Iran rejects de-escalation offers; Israel says it kills Iranian security chief,” had elliptically reported (screenshot at left):
More than 900 people have died since Israel began attacks on Lebanon on March 2, the Lebanese Health Ministry said on Tuesday. [Emphasis added.]
In repeated past reports Reuters had correctly reported that Hezbollah is responsible for bringing the war to Lebanon by firing on Israel March 1. For instance, this March 2 article, “Lebanon bans Hezbollah military actions after attack on Israel,” had reported:
Lebanon’s government on Monday banned military activities byHezbollah after it opened fire on Israel to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, a move likely to fuel tension with the Tehran-backed group as it faces a new Israeli offensive.. . .
Israel launched heavy airstrikes on the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of Beirut and more widely in Lebanon, in response to the Hezbollah drone and rocket strike, killing 52 people and wounding more than 150, according to a Lebanese health ministry official. [Emphases added.]
Reuters also previously reported (“Almost 700,000 displaced in Lebanon as war enters second week,” March 9):
Lebanon has been pulled deep into the war in the Middle East since Hezbollah opened fire to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, igniting an Israeli offensive which has killed nearly 500 people in Lebanon, according to Lebanese authorities, with the death toll rising by around 100 a day. [Emphasis added.]
Moreover, while referring to Israeli attacks on Lebanon, Reuters’ March 17 article made no mention whatsoever of any of the 522 waves of Hezbollah attacks on Israel’s north and center since Hezbollah opted to drag Lebanon into war. The Alma Research and Education Center provides details of these attacks from March 1 through March 17 at 16:00 IST. (Screenshot at left.)
The latest strikes suck Lebanon deeper into the war in the Middle East after Hezbollah attacked Israel on March 2, saying it aimed to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader. Israel has responded with an offensive that has killed more than 900 people in Lebanon and forced more than 800,000 from their homes, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. [Emphasis added.]