Otherwise as is, the timeline effectively erases the past year and a half of constant bombardment from the reporting, and treats the south as though it is not part of Lebanon.
To the Toronto Star and Associated Press,
I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (www.cjpme.org) regarding the article titled: “Lebanon’s deal with Israel requires Hezbollah to disarm. That might be difficult” published June 27, 2026.
First, the article specifies that the Israeli military released three Lebanese and Syrian workers who were taken near the southern village of Ain Arab on Friday. What the article omits to mention is that the Lebanese and Syrian workers were taken hostage by the Israeli military. Taking hostages is illegal under international law and constitutes a war crime.
We therefore ask that the article explicitly refer to the Lebanese and Syrians taken by Israel as hostages, so that readers clearly understand the illegality of the Israel’s hostage taking under international law.
Second, the article states that “more than 4,000 people in Lebanon have been killed in Israeli strikes since March, when Hezbollah fired at Israel two days after the Iran war began.”
In other words, the segment frames March 2, 2026, as the starting point of the timeline, as in, not by Israel for the 15 months preceding March 2.
This framing omits essential context that readers ought to be aware of and that is key to understanding the geopolitical aggression unfolding in the whole region.
At no point was there a genuine ceasefire in Lebanon; rather, what existed functioned as “ceasefire warfare,” serving as a cover for ongoing artillery shelling.
From November 2024 to March 1, 2026, Israel carried out daily aerial strikes in the south of Lebanon, targeted assassinations, and the occupation of five strategic points.
The ceasefire was violated over 10,000 documented times.
Over 300 Lebanese were killed by the Israeli forces.
The claim therefore that Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel in support of Iran is not entirely inaccurate, but it is incomplete and omits essential context. Hezbollah’s statement on March 2nd states two things:
1. that Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel in retaliation of the US assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Sayyid Ali Khamenei
2. and “in response to the continued Israeli aggression over the past fifteen months.”
To be clear, Hezbollah gave these two reasons in the same sentence, Toronto Star and Associated Press (and many other outlets) are choosing to deliberately omit one of these reasons and only mention the other. This is extremely unfair and incomplete framing.
It is critically important that Canadians understand this destruction did not begin on March 2, with Hezbollah’s attack, but has been occurring for well over a year. When the article mentions that “4,000 Lebanese have been killed when Hezbollah fired at Israel two days after the Iran war began,” most readers would assume this started on March 2 based on the framing.
In the interest of accurate and fair reporting, in line with Toronto Star’s statement of journalistic principles, future reporting should specify that Hezbollah launched rockets on March 2 not only in retaliation of the US assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Sayyid Ali Khamenei, but also because the Israeli military had already been conducting near-daily airstrikes in southern Lebanon for fifteen months.
Otherwise as is, the timeline effectively erases the past year and a half of constant bombardment from the reporting, and treats the south as though it is not part of Lebanon.
Thank you for reading and I remind the Toronto Star and Associated Press that I write in good faith to keep the media accountable regarding their coverage of West Asia. Looking forward to your response and to your consideration regarding the concerns outlined above.
Media Analyst
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East