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Corrections Are Not Enough: Washington Post Misquotes Israeli Expert, Then Inserts Hezbollah Propaganda
Hezbollah members hold flags marking Resistance and Liberation Day, in Kfar Kila near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon, May 25, 2021. Photo: Reuters/Aziz Taher
Lieutenant Colonel (Res.) Sarit Zehavi, the founder and president of Alma — an independent research and education center focused on Israel’s security challenges along its northern border — has become a sought-after commentator amid Israel’s ongoing strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.
Following the elimination of the terrorist organization’s leader, Hasan Nasrallah, it’s no surprise that the international media have turned to her for insight.
However, it was extremely surprising to see comments in The Washington Post connected with Zehavi that implied the Galilee region in northern Israel is “disputed” territory.
After confirming with Zehavi, she clarified that she had never made any statement during her interview with Washington Post journalist Loveday Morris that could be interpreted in that way.
No, @washingtonpost, the Galilee region in Israel’s north is not “disputed.” It’s recognized sovereign Israeli territory.
Is there any part of the country that @LovedayM thinks is legitimate? https://t.co/mF6FZTcEvC pic.twitter.com/O6NTWi5rCT
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) September 29, 2024
Not to mention the fact that the Galilee is an undisputed sovereign region of Israel, and recognized by the entire international community.
Shortly after we called out the error on X (formerly Twitter), the Post quietly amended its text — but at the time, didn’t acknowledge any correction.
But instead of simply removing the word “disputed” from the article, Morris appeared to double down, attempting to justify or explain why the status of the Galilee region could be considered disputed:
After we called out @LovedayM for misquoting an Israeli expert, @washingtonpost replaced the misquote with bogus Hezbollah propaganda that was also not given as background context by @ZehaviAlma in her interview.
Is this what passes for journalism in the Washington Post? https://t.co/DTsBl3p0ZS pic.twitter.com/3M1W4BWzyY
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) September 29, 2024
By doing so, Morris continued to misrepresent Zehavi’s comments by inserting “context” or “background” that was never mentioned in the interview, and worse still, amplified blatant Hezbollah propaganda in the process.
The only reason to bring up the status of the Galilee is to indulge bogus Hezbollah talking points.
So where does this claim that seven Israeli villages belong to Lebanon even come from?
As the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs explains, the villages were originally on Lebanese territory until the 1923 demarcation agreements between the mandatory powers of Britain and France, which placed them inside Mandatory Palestine.
Even if one were to challenge borders drawn by colonial powers over a century ago, the Lebanese state itself accepted this demarcation in the 1949 armistice agreement with Israel, and officially relinquished any claim to the seven villages, which remained under Israeli sovereignty.
Once again, we called out The Washington Post on X and, once again, a change was made. We also learned that Zehavi herself had complained to Morris. This time, an effort was clearly made to separate Zehavi’s comments from the context added by Morris.
However, at this point in time, the Post still chose to platform Hezbollah’s false claims.
Morris is certainly right about one thing: Hezbollah seeks Israel’s destruction. And that, like the ideology that drives Hezbollah’s masters in Tehran and its allies in Hamas, is the true context behind the rocket and drone attacks from Lebanon — not seven Israeli villages in the Galilee.
Later, as a result of a complaint by Zehavi, the Post finally issued a public correction:
While the article has resolved the incorrect attribution to Zehavi, it is utterly appalling that The Washington Post states that baseless Hezbollah propaganda is the “context” that was missing when Loveday Morris decided to make the completely false claim that the Galilee region is “disputed.”
It’s simply not good enough.
The author is the Editorial Director of HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.
The post Corrections Are Not Enough: Washington Post Misquotes Israeli Expert, Then Inserts Hezbollah Propaganda first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.