Washington Post Issues Editor’s Note After Backlash Over Hezbollah Missile Front Page

“The headline and subheadline … did not provide adequate context,” the newspaper said in a Tuesday corrections note

WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 5: The Washington Post Building at One Franklin Square Building on June 5, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

The Washington Post issued an editor’s note Tuesday after the newspaper faced backlash for a front page which included a photo of mourners at the funeral of an 11-year-old girl killed by a Hezbollah rocket strike with a headline about Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon. 

The original article, which appeared in Monday’s paper, was titled “Israel hits its targets in Lebanon,” and was accompanied by a photo of mourners over the coffin of Alma Ayman Fakhr al-Din, one of 12 children killed by a Hezbollah rocket strike in the Israel-controlled Golan Heights.

In Tuesday’s editor’s note, the Washington Post wrote “The headline and subheadline that accompanied a July 29 Page One photo and article about Israeli airstrikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon did not provide adequate context.”

“The headlines should have noted that the Israeli strikes were a response to a rocket strike from Lebanon that killed 12 teenagers and children in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights,” the correction continued. “The photo depicted mourning for one of those victims as the caption noted.”

The initial story saw significant backlash from those who pointed out the inconsistencies in the headline and the photo used. 

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