"We applaud you for shedding light on the tragic story of a Palestinian family killed in Turkey’s earthquake, among seventy other Palestinians who were victims of the natural disaster. It is imperative for publications like Saltwire to provide the Palestinian perspective to Canadian audiences. However, the article is missing context which is crucial for readers to be able to understand the reality of the Israeli occupation.
In the article, you mention that Abu Jalhoum “fled war and poverty in the Palestinian territory of Gaza.” Referring to Gaza only as “Palestinian territory” obscures the fact that Gaza is militarily-occupied territory according to international law. In doing so, the article fails to adequately describe the oppressive situation that Palestinians in Gaza face, and does not properly capture the severe restrictions as a result of Israel’s 15 year-long illegal blockade and siege.[1]"
February 9, 2023
To:
Steve Bartlett, Senior Managing Editor, Saltwire
Nidal al-Mughrabi, Journalist, Reuters
Dear Mr. Bartlett, Mr. al-Mughrabi,
I’m writing to you on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME, https://www.cjpme.org) to express our feedback regarding a Reuters news article titled “After fleeing war in Gaza, an entire Palestinian family dies in Turkey’s earthquake,” which was published by Saltwire on February 9, 2023.
We applaud you for shedding light on the tragic story of a Palestinian family killed in Turkey’s earthquake, among seventy other Palestinians who were victims of the natural disaster. It is imperative for publications like Saltwire to provide the Palestinian perspective to Canadian audiences. However, the article is missing context which is crucial for readers to be able to understand the reality of the Israeli occupation.
In the article, you mention that Abu Jalhoum “fled war and poverty in the Palestinian territory of Gaza.” Referring to Gaza only as “Palestinian territory” obscures the fact that Gaza is militarily-occupied territory according to international law. In doing so, the article fails to adequately describe the oppressive situation that Palestinians in Gaza face, and does not properly capture the severe restrictions as a result of Israel’s 15 year-long illegal blockade and siege.[1]
We therefore respectively ask that you add the following sentence to provide necessary context for the reader: “The Gaza strip has been under Israeli military occupation since 1967 and an illegal blockade restricting basic goods and medical equipment since 2007.”
Thank you for making these changes. Should you wish, you can contact me at 438-380-5410 for more information.
Sincerely,
Reem Majid
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East
[1] Amnesty International. Israel’s Apartheid against Palestinians: Cruel System of Domination and Crime
against Humanity. (2022). https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde15/5141/2022/en/.