On Mar. 4, 2026, Dalal Mawad reported for ABC News on Israeli military activity in Lebanon following Hezbollah’s retaliatory attacks on Israel for the killing of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. In her reporting of the situation, Mawad omitted crucial context as to Israeli operations against Hezbollah since November 2024, when Israel and Lebanon entered into a ceasefire agreement. She also did not mention that Hezbollah’s recent fire was itself a ceasefire violation given that it emanated from southern Lebanon – the area where it was supposed to have vacated pursuant to the deal.
Hezbollah is a violently anti-Israel, anti-West, Iranian proxy that has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States and many other countries. The group has both American and Israeli blood on its hands and is responsible for terror attacks and criminal activity in South America and Europe.
Hezbollah is based in Lebanon and joined nearly immediately in the war against Israel following Hamas’ invasion and massacre on Oct. 7, 2023. Hezbollah’s firing of over 10,000 rockets and other artillery in 13 months led to an internal refugee crisis for over 60,000 Israeli residents of northern Israel and claimed the lives of over 40 Israelis, including 12 Druze children.
Israel and Lebanon entered into a ceasefire agreement in November 2024. A key component to the agreement was that Lebanon would disarm Hezbollah by Dec. 31, 2025, monitored by the United States and France. Additionally, Israel would withdraw from positions in Lebanon. Despite it not being technically part of the agreement, the U.S. acknowledged Israel’s right to forcefully remove Hezbollah threats as necessary, which Israel argued became necessary. Even the Lebanese Foreign Minister admitted that the Lebanese government was unsuccessful in its attempts to persuade Hezbollah to give up weapons.
After describing the historic nature of the Lebanese government’s proclamation that Hezbollah’s military activity had become unlawful, Mawad rightly acknowledged the open question of whether the Lebanese army was capable of doing anything about it. However, she made no mention of Hezbollah’s failure to vacate the area or its rearming during the period since the negotiated ceasefire and no mention of the U.S. allowance for Israel to remove threats as necessary, leading ABC News viewers to believe Israel was the singular bad actor when she stated “there were still violations from the Israeli side – thousands – and the Israelis were still in the south of Lebanon.”
Israel alleged its strikes on Hezbollah since the November 2024 ceasefire were to disrupt the Iranian proxy from reestablishing a military presence, which would be a violation of the agreement. In addition, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) continued to maintain a presence at strategic points on the Lebanese border with Israel, a technical violation of the ceasefire, but which Israel says is necessary to protect Israeli citizens as the Lebanese army has not disarmed Hezbollah or taken control of the southern part of the country that borders Israel.
Mawad’s failure to offer any context surrounding Israel’s “violations” of the ceasefire oversimplified the complexity surrounding the activities on both Hezbollah and the IDF’s parts since the entry into the November 2024 agreement. ABC News viewers were left with a misleading impression that Israel alone had not performed its obligations under the ceasefire. In a heated conflict that includes multi-party agreements and separate understandings, omitting these critical facts distorted the reality on the ground. ABC audiences deserve more well-rounded reporting, not pre-shaped narratives.