On October 23, Monday, The New York Times (NYT) published a clarification in which it offered a tepid justification for attributing responsibility for the attack on the Gaza-based Al-Ahli al-Arabi Hospital last week to Israel. Interestingly, in the ‘clarification’ that came almost 5 days after the news was already debunked as a false claim by IDF, NYT admitted that they relied heavily on Hamas claims on the hospital explosion.
The initial reports “relied too heavily on claims by Hamas, and did not make clear that those claims could not immediately be verified,” it said. “The report left readers with an incorrect impression about what was known and how credible the account was.”
The New York Times has published an editors’ note about its early coverage of an explosion at a hospital in Gaza City. Read the note in full here.https://t.co/v5zQmY0euN
— The New York Times (@nytimes) October 23, 2023
The global media outlet, that had repeatedly and prominently featured Hamas’s claim that the blast last week at Gaza City’s al-Ahli Baptist Hospital was caused by an Israeli airstrike, in its ‘editor’s note’ justified its reportage by continuously reiterating that it had updated its coverage as more information became available on the incident.
“Within two hours, the headline and other text at the top of the website reflected the scope of the explosion and the dispute over responsibility,” the note read.
It, however, did acknowledge that the editors should have exercised more caution given the delicate nature of the news during an escalating war. “Given the sensitive nature of the news during a widening conflict, and the prominent promotion it received, Times editors should have taken more care with the initial presentation, and been more explicit about what information could be verified.,” the note added.
How AltNews’ Mohammad Zubair and global media including The New York Times peddled a terror organisation’s claims
It may be recalled that on October 17, a rocket fell on the Al-Ahli al-Arabi Hospital in Gaza. The local media working in Gaza immediately ran reports based on Hamas’ claims that it was an Israeli rocket, and around 500 people died in it.
However, as more information came to light, it was clear that the hospital’s parking lot took the hit, and the hospital building was intact. Furthermore, it was revealed that the rocket that fell on the hospital was not shot by Israel but by an Iran-backed terrorist organisation, Islamic Jihad, that operates from Gaza.
Initially, media houses like Al Jazeera, the Iranian channel Press TV, and the likes of Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair ran propaganda being pushed by Hamas, claiming it was an Israeli rocket. Several global media outlets including The New York Times also ended up peddling the same propaganda.
The New York Times had after the strike on October 17, shared its report and said, “Breaking News: An Israeli airstrike hit a Gaza hospital on Tuesday, killing at least 200 Palestinians, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, which said the number of casualties was expected to rise.”
Notably, the next day on October 18, NYT posted an update which read, “At least 500 people were killed by an Israeli airstrike at a Gaza hospital, the Palestinian Health Ministry said. Follow our live coverage.”
The same day, however, in another update the global media outlet did put out the Israeli military version but failed to apologise for misreporting the incident.
The New York Times was, however, not the only global media outlet that had gone on to believe the Hamas version of the incident. Others like Al Jazeera English, The Washington Post, The Associate Press and Reuters believed the terror organisation Hamas and fell into its trap of lies. Interestingly, while most experts were analyzing the hospital explosion footage, comparing geolocations in maps, studying building damage, and trying to verify facts and claims made by Hamas, Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair had a busy day sharing propaganda posts to accuse Israel of the bombing the hospital.
Hamas claims accusing Israel of strike on hospital debunked
On October 17, a rocket fell on a hospital in Gaza, resulting in immediate worldwide outrage. Hamas claimed an Israeli rocket fell on the hospital, killing 500 Palestinians. However, Israel denied any involvement in the attack and said that it was a failed rocket launch by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) that resulted in civilian casualties.
Officials from the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) were quick to point out that this was not an Israeli airstrike but rather a misfired rocket from within Gaza. IDF presented aerial photographs as evidence during a press briefing, showing that the damage was primarily concentrated outside the hospital, specifically in the parking lot. It also revealed that Hamas was aware of the misfire, which occurred at around 6:59 PM local time on the same day as the attack on the Al-Ahli al-Arabi Hospital in Gaza.
IDF also highlighted the absence of any crater or structural damage to buildings, which are standard in case of airstrikes. IDF bombings in Gaza have been precision strikes targeted at Hamas infrastructure that demolish the buildings within a few seconds. Also, the parking lot in the hospital showed no signs of a crater, and even delicate structures like clay tile roofing and solar panels were intact.
Despite knowing all of this, Hamas still began a media campaign accusing Israel of being responsible for the incident. While the majority of experts were examining the hospital explosion video, comparing geolocations on maps, examining building damage, and trying to verify the facts and claims made by Hamas, a few assorted Islamists, such as the well-known ‘fact-checker’ Zubair, and these aforementioned global news organizations quickly jumped in to support Hamas’s lies pertaining to the Gaza hospital attack.
OpIndia’s detailed report on the strike at the Gaza hospital can be seen here.
