A Difficult Deal in Lebanon
Aims
A report about a missing American journalist raises questions about information, protection, and justice.
The lesson, stage by stage
- News10 min
In the news: The story
Read a 128-word news story: Information for Protection: A Deal Under Questions
A BBC investigation reports that former Syrian general Bassam al-Hassan is living in Lebanon, although he is wanted in connection with serious crimes under Syria’s former government. The report says US and Lebanese officials have given him protection and money under an agreement. In return, Hassan has reportedly shared information about American journalist Austin Tice, who has been missing since 2012. Officials reportedly found no evidence of Tice’s remains at a place Hassan identified, but sources disagree about whether the search was complete, raising questions about how reliable some of his claims are. Syrian officials have reportedly called for Hassan to return to face a trial. The case raises difficult questions about justice and how governments should act when they need information from someone accused of serious crimes.
- Vocabulary8 min
Vocabulary: Words in the news
7 items
- Discussion10 min
Discussion: Trust and information
2 discussion questions
- When, if ever, should officials offer protection in return for information?
- What would help you decide whether information from someone in this situation is reliable?
- Discussion10 min
Discussion: Making hard choices
2 discussion questions
- Have you ever had to decide whether to trust information from someone with their own interests? What helped you decide?
- What makes an agreement feel fair to you?
- Discussion10 min
Discussion: The bigger picture
2 discussion questions
- How should a government balance finding a missing person with the demand for justice?
- What rules could help make agreements between governments and informants fair and open?
Target vocabulary
In a Tuton account these words become your student's vocabulary deck, so they come back in practice between lessons.
- investigation
- A careful effort to discover facts about something
- protection
- Help that keeps someone safe from harm
- agreement
- A decision or plan accepted by two sides
- information
- Facts or details that help someone understand something
- evidence
- Facts or objects that help show what happened
- reliable
- Able to be trusted or believed
- justice
- Fair treatment, especially when a law is broken
This plan comes from the World course in the Tuton library. Browse all free lesson plans.