By Berl Falbaum
I have written extensively about the distorted and disgraceful coverage of the Hamas-Israel war by much of the mainstream media in the last two years.
Among the leaders in Israel bashing has been the “reputable” Guardian, the daily in the United Kingdom. Not a day has gone by without the paper publishing at least one article — often several — ripping the Jewish state to shreds.
Even with its record, the Guardian outdid itself with a very long piece on the children killed in the war (all Israel’s fault) that included charts, photos of children and, even, short personal sketches of those killed in the war by, of course, Israel.
Says the paper in introducing the piece titled, “Young Lives Cut Short on an Unimaginable Scale: The 18,457 Children on Gaza’s List of War Dead”: “The children’s names below appear on a list of victims of Israel’s offensive in Gaza, maintained by health authorities in the territory. As of the end of July it ran to 60,199 names of whom 18,457 were under 18.
“Far from comprehensive, the list does not include the thousands still buried under the rubble of destroyed buildings, as well as the war’s many indirect victims.”
Now, that is a piece of objective journalism. Let’s take it apart.
This list comes of “health authorities.” Read Hamas, whose name, incidentally does not appear at all in the article.
Did the Guardian check all 18,457 names? Of course, Gaza “health authorities” (Hamas) which beheaded civilians, burned them alive, gang-raped women on October 7, 2023 would not lie.
The paper also knows that there are “thousands” more buried in the rubble.
The Guardian quotes organizations testifying to the credibility of the statistics but it does not include the result of a report by Australian academics who studied Hamas’ own data and found the numbers to be statistically impossible. The researchers said Hamas inflated deaths among women and children to advance its narrative. This report did not get headlines elsewhere in the media world either.
It is important to note that, at times, a media institution such as the Guardian can distort more by what it omits than what it publishes: Consider:
—As noted, the name “Hamas” is not mention in the entire article.
—There is not one word on the October 7 butchery committed by Hamas.
—The paper ignores any Hamas culpability and does not report that a high civilian death toll was a strategic goal of the terrorist organization.
—It does not discuss that the ratio of combatant deaths compared to civilians may be higher than in other wars because the conflict is in a high-density urban area and Hamas is entrenched in civilian infrastructures — schools, hospitals, residential homes, etc.
—The Guardian is silent on how many combatants account for the alleged 60,199 deaths.
—It does not mention that since the first day of its existence, Israel has only fought defensive wars against Arab states and endured countless terrorist attacks since its founding in 1948. Not once did Israel start a war.
—The paper doesn’t discuss the fact that in war, civilians, including children, always pay a higher price in war then combatants — sometimes suffering two or three times more deaths.
Quoting several Israel critics, the paper concludes: “The scale of child casualties dwarfs those from conflicts in Israel and occupied Palestinian territory and the broader region in recent decades.”
Really? What about the following?
The Sudan: Some humanitarian officials have called the Sudan crisis the worst in the history of mankind. An estimated 24.6 million people — including millions of children — face high levels of acute food insecurity, more than half of Sudan’s population, and more than 600,000 endure catastrophic hunger, all resulting from a civil war.
Yemen: Nine years into the conflict in Yemen, almost 10 million children remain in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.
“The vicious combination of years of protracted conflict, a shattered economy, and a failed social support system have had a devastating impact on the lives of the most vulnerable children in Yemen,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “Far too many children continue to be deprived of basic necessities, including proper nutrition, which could threaten generations to come unless urgent action is taken to provide children with the preventive measures and treatment they so desperately need.”
Haiti: The number of children displaced by violence in Haiti has almost doubled in the past year, with 680,000 now uprooted from their homes, a new UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Child Alert has reported.
More than 3 million children — the highest number on record — are now in need of humanitarian assistance and cases of acute malnutrition, child recruitment, gender-based violence and other children’s rights violations are on the rise.
“Children in Haiti are being displaced at a distressing pace and scale,” said Russell. “Each time they are forced to flee, they lose not only their homes but also their chance to go to school, to be safe, and to simply be children.”
The Guardian story on the death of children in Gaza could have been written about Haiti, Yemen, the Sudan or any of the other some 30 countries where wars are raging.
Having no journalistic ethical boundaries, the Guardian reports on how many children Israel killed in previous conflicts. Ignoring the circumstances of the battles while citing a variety of sources, the paper “reminds” us: In 2008 during Operation Cast Lead, Israel killed 345 children in Gaza; in 2014, it killed 548 children over 50 days in Operation Protective Edge.
As I have written previously, the plight of the children and adult civilians is heart-wrenching. Who is not moved by the devastation and suffering?
But the causes need to be reported comprehensively, objectively, and in context while examining all the complexities. If Israel has committed abuses, it must be held accountable like any other party in a war. But even alleged offenses, need to be analyzed and reported with sophistication and journalism’s highest standards.
The good news for The Guardian: It may well be honored for outstanding journalism by receiving Hamas’s equivalent to the Pulitzer Prize.
————————
Berl Falbaum is a veteran journalist and author of 12 books.
I have written extensively about the distorted and disgraceful coverage of the Hamas-Israel war by much of the mainstream media in the last two years.
Among the leaders in Israel bashing has been the “reputable” Guardian, the daily in the United Kingdom. Not a day has gone by without the paper publishing at least one article — often several — ripping the Jewish state to shreds.
Even with its record, the Guardian outdid itself with a very long piece on the children killed in the war (all Israel’s fault) that included charts, photos of children and, even, short personal sketches of those killed in the war by, of course, Israel.
Says the paper in introducing the piece titled, “Young Lives Cut Short on an Unimaginable Scale: The 18,457 Children on Gaza’s List of War Dead”: “The children’s names below appear on a list of victims of Israel’s offensive in Gaza, maintained by health authorities in the territory. As of the end of July it ran to 60,199 names of whom 18,457 were under 18.
“Far from comprehensive, the list does not include the thousands still buried under the rubble of destroyed buildings, as well as the war’s many indirect victims.”
Now, that is a piece of objective journalism. Let’s take it apart.
This list comes of “health authorities.” Read Hamas, whose name, incidentally does not appear at all in the article.
Did the Guardian check all 18,457 names? Of course, Gaza “health authorities” (Hamas) which beheaded civilians, burned them alive, gang-raped women on October 7, 2023 would not lie.
The paper also knows that there are “thousands” more buried in the rubble.
The Guardian quotes organizations testifying to the credibility of the statistics but it does not include the result of a report by Australian academics who studied Hamas’ own data and found the numbers to be statistically impossible. The researchers said Hamas inflated deaths among women and children to advance its narrative. This report did not get headlines elsewhere in the media world either.
It is important to note that, at times, a media institution such as the Guardian can distort more by what it omits than what it publishes: Consider:
—As noted, the name “Hamas” is not mention in the entire article.
—There is not one word on the October 7 butchery committed by Hamas.
—The paper ignores any Hamas culpability and does not report that a high civilian death toll was a strategic goal of the terrorist organization.
—It does not discuss that the ratio of combatant deaths compared to civilians may be higher than in other wars because the conflict is in a high-density urban area and Hamas is entrenched in civilian infrastructures — schools, hospitals, residential homes, etc.
—The Guardian is silent on how many combatants account for the alleged 60,199 deaths.
—It does not mention that since the first day of its existence, Israel has only fought defensive wars against Arab states and endured countless terrorist attacks since its founding in 1948. Not once did Israel start a war.
—The paper doesn’t discuss the fact that in war, civilians, including children, always pay a higher price in war then combatants — sometimes suffering two or three times more deaths.
Quoting several Israel critics, the paper concludes: “The scale of child casualties dwarfs those from conflicts in Israel and occupied Palestinian territory and the broader region in recent decades.”
Really? What about the following?
The Sudan: Some humanitarian officials have called the Sudan crisis the worst in the history of mankind. An estimated 24.6 million people — including millions of children — face high levels of acute food insecurity, more than half of Sudan’s population, and more than 600,000 endure catastrophic hunger, all resulting from a civil war.
Yemen: Nine years into the conflict in Yemen, almost 10 million children remain in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.
“The vicious combination of years of protracted conflict, a shattered economy, and a failed social support system have had a devastating impact on the lives of the most vulnerable children in Yemen,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “Far too many children continue to be deprived of basic necessities, including proper nutrition, which could threaten generations to come unless urgent action is taken to provide children with the preventive measures and treatment they so desperately need.”
Haiti: The number of children displaced by violence in Haiti has almost doubled in the past year, with 680,000 now uprooted from their homes, a new UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Child Alert has reported.
More than 3 million children — the highest number on record — are now in need of humanitarian assistance and cases of acute malnutrition, child recruitment, gender-based violence and other children’s rights violations are on the rise.
“Children in Haiti are being displaced at a distressing pace and scale,” said Russell. “Each time they are forced to flee, they lose not only their homes but also their chance to go to school, to be safe, and to simply be children.”
The Guardian story on the death of children in Gaza could have been written about Haiti, Yemen, the Sudan or any of the other some 30 countries where wars are raging.
Having no journalistic ethical boundaries, the Guardian reports on how many children Israel killed in previous conflicts. Ignoring the circumstances of the battles while citing a variety of sources, the paper “reminds” us: In 2008 during Operation Cast Lead, Israel killed 345 children in Gaza; in 2014, it killed 548 children over 50 days in Operation Protective Edge.
As I have written previously, the plight of the children and adult civilians is heart-wrenching. Who is not moved by the devastation and suffering?
But the causes need to be reported comprehensively, objectively, and in context while examining all the complexities. If Israel has committed abuses, it must be held accountable like any other party in a war. But even alleged offenses, need to be analyzed and reported with sophistication and journalism’s highest standards.
The good news for The Guardian: It may well be honored for outstanding journalism by receiving Hamas’s equivalent to the Pulitzer Prize.
————————
Berl Falbaum is a veteran journalist and author of 12 books.
