"It should be mentioned that these are Palestinians who were forcibly expelled from their homes by Israel following the Nakba in 1948. AP articles typically include this type of basic contextualization when discussing events in Israel. The same treatment should be given to Palestinians living in Lebanon."
August 18, 2023
To:
Angus Scott, Editor in Chief, The Niagara Falls Review
Josef Federman, News Director, The Associated Press
John Daniszewski, VP and Editor at Large, The Associated Press
Dear Mr. Scott, Mr. Daniszewski,
I’m writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME, https://www.cjpme.org) to express concern about your article titled “UN suspends services in Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon over gunmen inside its facilities,” as published in the Niagara Falls Review on August 18, 2023.
While your coverage gives your readers ample detailed information regarding the current events in the Ein el-Hilweh refugee camp, no context is given regarding who these Palestinian refugees are and why they are in a camp in southern Lebanon in the first place. It should be mentioned that these are Palestinians who were forcibly expelled from their homes by Israel following the Nakba in 1948. AP articles typically include this type of basic contextualization when discussing events in Israel. The same treatment should be given to Palestinians living in Lebanon.
As such, I would suggest that you add a sentence or paragraph of context to the article to provide your readers with a basic understanding of why there are Palestinian refugees living in a camp in Lebanon.[i]
Should you wish to discuss this further, please do not hesitate to contact me at 438-3805410.
Sincerely,
Mohamed Khalaf
Director of Strategic Operations, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East
[i] “Ein El Hilweh Camp,” UNRWA, https://www.unrwa.org/where-we-work/lebanon/ein-el-hilweh-camp#:~:text=Ein%20El%20Hilweh%20camp%20is,mostly%20from%20coastal%20Palestinian%20towns.