The podcast was especially poignant for me as I have personal experience of wildfires. I live in the Okanagan valley of British Columbia and wildfires have become as our Premier recently said the ‘new normal’. I have come to appreciate the dangers that firefighters face in doing their work to protect forests and infrastructures. However, unlike Lebanese firefighters, none of the firefighters in the Okanagan have to worry about being targeted by drones.
Dear Ms. Poisson, Mr. Christou, Mr. Boshra and Mr. Moore,
I am writing on behalf of Canadiansfor Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) regarding the Frontburner podcast - Is Israel Deliberately Starting Wildfires in Lebanon?
First of all thank you for raising the awareness of Israel’s intentional starting of wildfires in Lebanon and the economic, ecological and cultural impacts on the families that have had to leave their homes and land. The dropping of flares during the daytime and the repeated use of white phosphorus illustrates Israel’s intent to destroy the livelihood of Lebanese farmers through destruction of their forests and farmlands.
The podcast was especially poignant for me as I have personal experience of wildfires. I live in the Okanagan valley of British Columbia and wildfires have become as our Premier recently said the ‘new normal’. I have come to appreciate the dangers that firefighters face in doing their work to protect forests and infrastructures. However, unlike Lebanese firefighters, none of the firefighters in the Okanagan have to worry about being targeted by drones.
The mark of balanced reporting is to include a diversity of perspectives and you most certainly achieved that in this podcast.We appreciated that you included the perspectives of Hussein Fakih, head of civil defence in Nabatieh, Dr. Younes, the founder of Green Southerner and the Mayor of Yaroun. You also reached out to the Israeli IDF for comment. As is typical of the Israeli IDF, they didn’t respond to the specifics of your question but rather responded with a generic statement that “they take precautions to protect civilians and the environment in their operations in southern Lebanon”. As your podcast illustrates, the evidence suggests otherwise.
Our only concern with the podcast relates to the following statement: “Since the war broke out in March after Hezbollah attacked Israel in solidarity with Iran…”. ‘Solidarity with Iran’ was not the only reason why Hezbollah refused direct negotiations with Israel. It would have been helpful if the interview had dug a little deeper into Hezbollah's reasons for rejecting the Israel-Lebanon framework. This would have been an important context to help listeners understand the complexity of the Israel-Lebanon-Hezbollah dynamics. The other option would have been to omit the phrase “in solidarity with Iran” from the statement.
Thank you again for your thorough interview that helps listeners like me better understand the Lebanese people’s ongoing reality and the intent of the Israeli government.
Sincerely,
Debbie Hubbard
Kelowna, British Columbia