Associated Press photo captions extend public relations emergency care treatment to Jema’a Islamiya, falsely casting the designated Lebanese terror organization as merely a civilian outfit providing medical assistance.
A sampling of the misleading and incomplete captions which fail to hint of any elements other than civilian follows:
A man carries belongings of a paramedic killed at a paramedic center the was hit by an Israeli airstrike early Wednesday in Hebbariye village, south Lebanon, Wednesday, March 27, 2024. The Israeli airstrike on a paramedic center linked to a Lebanese Sunni Muslim group killed several people of its members. The strike was one of the deadliest single attacks since violence erupted along the Lebanon-Israel border more than five months ago. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
People carry the coffins of paramedics who were killed in an Israeli airstrike, during a funeral procession in Hebbariye village, south Lebanon, Wednesday, March 27, 2024. The Israeli airstrike on a paramedic center linked to a Lebanese Sunni Muslim group killed several people. The strike was one of the deadliest single attacks since violence erupted along the Lebanon-Israel border more than five months ago. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
People gather on the rubble of a paramedic center that was destroyed by an Israeli airstrike early Wednesday in Hebbariye village, south Lebanon, Wednesday, March 27, 2024. The Israeli airstrike on a paramedic center linked to a Lebanese Sunni Muslim group killed several people of its members. The strike was one of the deadliest single attacks since violence erupted along the Lebanon-Israel border more than five months ago. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
Meanwhile, the AP story about the strike on the Hebbariye site fills in with more information, but many news consumers may see only the captions, missing the article indicating that this was in fact a site affiliated with a terror organization. AP’s story noted
Wednesday’s Israeli strikes targeted a Lebanese Sunni political and militant organization, the Islamic Group, which has joined the Shiite militant group Hezbollah in its fight against Israel. (Emphasis added.) . . .
Israel said it killed an Islamic Group member involved in attacks against Israel, as well as several other militants.
Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin, the head of the Israeli army’s Northern Command, said Israel was operating against the Islamic Group and had struck a “large number of operatives” and was also conducting “very significant strikes” against Hezbollah.
“We are at war. We have been at war for almost half a year now, and it doesn’t end with Hezbollah,” he told a gathering of commanders.
Moreover, Haaretz elaborates with additional relevant information about the fatalities and their reported intentions to carry out attacks:
The Israeli army confirmed that fighter jets struck a building overnight in Lebanon’s Al-Bireh, belonging to the Jama’a Islamiya militant Muslim group, which has both a military wing and a civilian array that manages rescue services.
According to the IDF, a central figure in the organization – who promoted terror attacks on Israel with other terrorists – was staying in the building when it was struck.
The IDF also said that the seven people killed in the strike were about to carry out a terror attack against Israeli targets.
CAMERA contacted AP to request clarification of the inadequate captions. Watch this space for any updates.