"These phrases unfortunately read as near-celebrations of Israeli attacks that have caused, for instance in the context of Lebanon with the pager attacks and Nasrallah’s assassination, a high number of civilian deaths and injuries. This language also colours these potential war crimes as a triumph of Israeli ingenuity rather than profound human tragedy, intentional or not."
October 7, 2024
To:
Chris Brown, Foreign correspondent, CBC News
Dear Mr. Brown,
I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) to express my concern regarding your article titled “How Israel responds to Iranian missile strikes could reshape politics of the region,” published on Oct 2, 2024. I believe that your analysis of the potential Israeli response after Iran’s attacks excludes and dehumanizes important narratives from the region that would otherwise fully contextualize the story.
Your analysis of Netanyahu’s response is framed through the lens of proxy wars, but omits the impact of these events on Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon, which have all suffered significant civilian casualties as a result of ongoing conflicts.
The significant death toll of Palestinians and Lebanese civilians that have occurred as a direct result of Israel’s military aggression on both occupied Palestine and Lebanon are completely excluded from this article. Their erasure to your story is, implicitly, dehumanizing, with the message being that Palestinian and Lebanese civilians who are victims of Israeli attacks don’t matter or at least can be ignored in an article focused on Netanyahu’s electoral strategy to remain in office.
The same level of dehumanization appears when you use excessively editorialized language when describing Israeli recent aggressions in Lebanon, Yemen, and Gaza. Terms such as “crushing blow,” “humiliating losses,” and “decimation or debilitation of its key proxies” frame conflicts as militaristic spectacles rather than human tragedies that affect civilians on all sides. CJPME has been critical of Canadian media using sensational language like the ones highlighted as it crosses the line of acceptable journalistic standards, even for analysis, as it often exhibits blatant anti-Arab racism and dehumanizing rhetoric towards civilians in the region. These phrases unfortunately read as near-celebrations of Israeli attacks that have caused, for instance in the context of Lebanon with the pager attacks and Nasrallah’s assassination, a high number of civilian deaths and injuries. This language also colours these potential war crimes as a triumph of Israeli ingenuity rather than profound human tragedy, intentional or not.
Lastly, I want to challenge the opinion that Iran is “confronting the West and Israel.” This idea perpetuates the problematic framework of the “clash of civilizations” theory. In a past letter of concern regarding a televised broadcast using this theory, I argued that this kind of framing feeds into racist stereotypes and presents a one-sided narrative that fails to acknowledge the complexities and the suffering of the civilians in the region.
Here is what I said to the CBC about it in the past:
The “Clash of Civilizations” theory by Samuel P. Huntington is a deeply problematic western political framework that reduces complex political, economic, and social actions to simplistic cultural binaries, turning cultures into these abstract monoliths and ignoring the nuances and cultural diversities within civilizations. By promoting the idea that cultural differences are unbridgeable and that conflict between civilizations is inevitable, this theory exacerbates tensions, fuels xenophobia and racism, and hinders efforts towards dialogue, understanding, and cooperation. To champion such a troubled narrative without critical examination is not only gravely irresponsible, but also extremely shameful and embarrassing for the public broadcaster to perpetuate this kind of hate rhetoric which normalizes orientalist stereotypes and justifies violence. Adopting this framework of clashing civilizations, implicitly supports the narrative that Iran and Arab militant groups that oppose Israeli occupation are inherently “barbarians.”
While I don’t expect that you will make changes to your existing article based on this feedback, I very much hope you will consider these points in your future reporting.
I await your response,
Anthony Issa
Media Analyst
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East