At around 01:05 a.m. on the morning of March 2nd, sirens sounded in the city of Haifa and surrounding towns, as well as in the Upper Galilee.
“Sirens were activated in the northern city of Haifa and surrounding areas shortly after 1 a.m., and the Israel Defense Forces confirmed not long after that the source of the rocket fire that set off the alarms was not Iran, but Lebanon. It then stated that Hezbollah was behind the attack, and Hezbollah acknowledged responsibility soon after.
The military said that one rocket was intercepted by air defenses, and at least two others were allowed to fall in open areas.
Alerts warning of a drone attack also sounded in the Upper Galilee shortly after, with air defenses shooting down at least two suspected drones, according to military sources.
At least three more rockets launched from Lebanon struck open areas in northern Israel at around 3 a.m., without setting off sirens, “according to protocol,” the military said.
There were no reports of injuries or damage as a result of the attacks.
Hezbollah, in a statement claiming responsibility for launching “a barrage of precision missiles and a swarm of drones,” said it attacked as “revenge for the blood of the Supreme Leader of the Muslims, Ali Khamenei.”
The terror group claimed that it had targeted a missile defense site south of Haifa.”
BBC News website audiences first learned of those incidents some two hours later when an entry on the live page that was active at the time informed them that Israel was striking targets in Lebanon.
A further ten entries relating to that story were published in the nearly four hours that followed under the following titles: [emphasis added]
“IDF accuses Hezbollah of acting on behalf of Iran”
“Lebanese PM warns against launching rockets from southern Lebanon”
“Hezbollah says it has launched missiles, drones towards Israel”
“Hezbollah has confirmed it has launched missiles and drones from Lebanon towards Israel.
The group says it’s in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei.
The projectiles fell in open areas in Israeli territory, according to the Israeli military.”
“Traffic jams as people leave Beirut’s southern suburbs”
“Beirut residents wake to sound of explosions”
“Here in the Lebanese capital Beirut people were woken by a series of explosions that sounded through the city shortly before 03:00 local time, as the Israeli military began striking Hezbollah targets after the Iran-backed group fired rockets at northern Israel.
In a statement, Hezbollah said it was acting in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, calling it a “legitimate act of self-defence”.
It said it had launched a “salvo of precision rockets and a swarm of drones” at a missile defence site in northern Israel.”
“What we know as US-Israeli war with Iran enters day three”
“In the early hours of Monday Israel began launching strikes on what it said were Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, after the militant group fired rockets at Israel.”
“Israel tells residents of more than 50 villages in Lebanon to evacuate”
“Evacuations in Lebanon as Israel orders dozens of villages to leave”
“’It’s absolutely miserable,’ man fleeing southern Lebanon tells BBC”
“Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon exchange fire”
“The IDF has told residents of more than 50 villages in Lebanon to evacuate, after Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon exchanged fire
There are traffic jams in Lebanon as people flee their homes, with one resident telling the BBC that it’s “absolutely miserable””
At that point – with BBC News website audiences still not having seen a clear and accurate account of the two rounds of rocket fire and a drone attack and the targeted locations – that live page was closed down and a new one opened. Relevant entries on that live page continued to present a partial picture.
“US-Israeli war with Iran enters day three as conflict widens”
“The US-Israeli war with Iran has entered its third day, with the conflict spreading to Lebanon overnight as Israel and Hezbollah exchanged fire. Explosions were reported in southern Beirut, while Israel ordered residents of 50 towns and villages in Lebanon to leave ahead of strikes […]
In the early hours of Monday Israel began launching strikes on what it said were Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, after the militant group fired rockets at Israel”
“Israel tells residents of more than 50 villages in Lebanon to evacuate”
“’It’s absolutely miserable,’ man fleeing southern Lebanon tells BBC”
“IDF says it launched fresh strikes in Lebanon”
“In the very early hours of Monday Israel, began launching strikes on what it said were Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, after the militant group fired rockets at Israel.”
“IDF will intensify strikes on Lebanon – IDF senior official”
Only at 07:50 local time – nearly seven hours after the first of Hizballah’s attacks – did BBC audiences learn that it had targeted Israel’s third-largest city.
Later relevant entries included:
“Israeli strikes on Lebanon kill 31, health ministry says”
“Israeli military says Lebanon offensive will last ‘several days’”
“Hezbollah’s attack on Israel puts Lebanon in precarious situation”
“IDF says all options on table when asked about ground operations in Lebanon”
“Drones hum over Beirut”
“IDF says it has struck senior member of Hezbollah”
“Shock, fury and tough choices for Lebanon’s government”
At 13:00 local time on March 2nd – almost twelve hours after the first attack took place – BBC audiences were still being told that Israel had “accused” Hizballah of carrying out attacks that the terrorist organisation had already claimed hours earlier.
As we see, BBC interest in reporting on Hizballah’s violations of the November 2024 ceasefire agreement only began after Israel had responded to the attacks launched from the region south of the Litani river, despite its having reported less that two months earlier that the Lebanese armed forces had “taken over security” in that area.
BBC audiences were not provided with a precise picture of the timings and locations of the different attacks or told how many of the rockets and drones were intercepted. Hizballah’s attacks were repeatedly presented under the umbrella false equivalence description “exchanged fire”. While Israelis affected by those attacks are completely absent from the BBC’s reporting, considerable coverage relating to the Lebanese population was provided.
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