The issue with the article is that it does not provide space to challenge or raise skepticism around Israel’s claim that the IDF only targets buildings used by the resistance in Lebanon.
To the Toronto Star and Associated Press,
I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East to express concern regarding the AP article published by Toronto Star titled: “Israel sentences 2 soldiers to military prison for desecration of Christian statue in Lebanon.”
My concern specifically relates to the section in the article that states: “Israel’s military says it only targets buildings that were used as outposts by the Iran-backed militant group.”
The issue with the article is that it does not provide space to challenge or raise skepticism around Israel’s claim that the IDF only targets buildings used by the resistance in Lebanon.
The reality on the ground suggests otherwise. While Israel claims it only targets infrastructure linked to the resistance in Lebanon, there have been repeated attacks on civilian infrastructure and civilians themselves. Yet the article glaringly omits this perspective and instead uncritically repeats Israel’s claims.
Just today, the IDF targeted a vehicle with two missiles, killing Zibdine municipality employee Yahya Ali Kobeissi and Hussein Ahmad Kobeissi while they were delivering bread to residents in the southern Lebanese town of Zibdine.
Yesterday, paramedic Ali Reda Abbas Souli was killed after an Israeli strike hit his ambulance in Burj Qalaouiyeh, southern Lebanon. In fact, according to reports, more than 100 healthcare workers have been killed in the line of duty since March 2.
On Saturday, May 9, an Israeli airstrike targeted a residential building in the southern Lebanese town of Saksakieh, killing members of the Fahs family. The building was sheltering three families displaced from the village of Jebchit.
In previous reporting, such as in this article, it is specified that the Israeli military was destroying alleged Hezbollah infrastructure in Yaroun but also noted that “the Catholic Church in Lebanon rejected claims that the compound was used for military purposes.”
The Toronto Star and Associated Press should maintain this same journalistic standard by including skepticism, counter-perspectives, and relevant context when reporting Israeli military claims.
Israel has a long and well-documented history of spreading misinformation to justify its war crimes and crimes against humanity. As outlined in the Canadian Association of Journalists’ ethics guidelines, fairness and diversity in reporting are pillars of responsible journalism. The article should therefore be amended to include a Lebanese perspective from the ground, particularly given that the IDF has been repeatedly targeting civilian infrastructure and civilians themselves in Lebanon.
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East