Yvonne post, philosophy homework help

Reply to post in 100 words or more.I recently had a conversation with a good friend, and what she mentioned to me ties into this week's topic... withholding the truth. Is this the same as lying? The truth was not told because it would hurt a family or could possibly tear it apart. During a recent family gathering there was a heated discussion about another event. Neither party involved was in the right. Both were at fault for one thing or another. The two parties were between an uncle and his nephew. During their discussion, the uncle made a threat to the nephew with a gun. This occured in a bathroom at the venue they were at. There were no other witnesses. The story came out when my friends son mentioned it conversation one day around his sister who went and told their mom (my friend). No one would have known about this even happening if he hadn't slipped up. When she questioned him about it, and why he didnt let her know what happened that night, he said because he knew it would cause problems with the family and break their grandmothers heart that the family was not united anymore. He withheld information from her about that night to avoid hurting the greater # of people. But at the same time, what his uncle did to him was wrong. He was threatened with a legal deadly weapon. How does one handle this situation? Since this came out, the family does not gather anymore, cousins do not see each other and the grandparents are saddened. This is exactly what he didnt want to happen which is why he didnt say anything. When she told me about it, I was conflicted because as mother I would definetly want to know if someone threatened my son with a gun but also I can see the son's point of view and not wanting to hurt others. So with that said, is withholding information the same as lying?