"Finally, your article omits the Palestinian death toll. This further skews the balance of the story and makes it one-sided. The Palestinian death toll is more than ten times higher than the Israeli one."
December 7, 2023
To:
Simon Whitehouse, Journalist, Northern News Services
James McCarthy, Managing Editor, Northern News Services
Dear Mr. Whitehouse and Mr. McCarthy,
I’m writing to alert you to a factual error in your article. You write:
“On Oct. 7, Palestinian militants led by Hamas slaughtered more than 1,400 Israeli civilians. Attacks included the rape and mutilation of women and the capture of more than 200 people, several of whom have since been released. In response, the Israeli government declared war and began targeted attacks in northern Gaza.”
The death toll following the October 7 attack by Hamas was modified to 1,200.[i] Further, they were not all civilians. 764 were confirmed civilians. The rest included 274 soldiers, 57 police officers, and 38 security guards.[ii] This information will likely be updated in minor ways, but it is very up-to-date.
Please update your figures to accurately reflect the death toll of the Hamas attack, clarifying civilian and military deaths.
You state as fact that the attacks included rape. There are increasing numbers of eyewitnesses coming forward.[iii] However, I believe it is still a violation of basic journalistic standards to make this claim without qualification. There are allegations of rape and many in the international community are beginning to call for an investigation. Again, the claims remain allegations backed by eyewitnesses, but no clear forensic evidence has yet been released and Hamas continues to reject the allegations.
Please clarify that the claim of rape is currently still an allegation.
I am concerned by the claim that Israel began its assault with “targeted attacks in northern Gaza.” Israel’s attacks have led to the damage or destruction of some 40% of Gaza’s housing according to some experts.[iv] There is no evidence that Israel’s attacks have been “targeted” and stating so downplays the devastation faced by Palestinians in Gaza.
Please remove the qualification that Israel’s attacks were “targeted.”
Finally, your article omits the Palestinian death toll. This further skews the balance of the story and makes it one-sided. The Palestinian death toll is more than ten times higher than the Israeli one.
Please update your article to include the Palestinian death toll.
Sincerely,
Jason Toney
Director of Media Advocacy, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East
[i] Times of Israel, “Israel revises death toll from Oct. 7 Hamas assault, dropping it from 1,400 to 1,200,” November 11, 2023, https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-revises-death-toll-from-oct-7-hamas-assault-dropping-it-from-1400-to-1200/.
[ii] Times of Israel, “14 kids under 10, 25 people over 80: Up-to-date breakdown of Oct 7 victims we know about,” December 4, 2023, https://www.timesofisrael.com/14-kids-under-10-25-people-over-80-up-to-date-breakdown-of-oct-7-victims-we-know-about/.
[iii] CNN, “What we know about rape and sexual violence inflicted by Hamas during its terror attack on Israel,” December 7, 2023, https://edition.cnn.com/2023/12/06/middleeast/rape-sexual-violence-hamas-israel-what-we-know-intl/index.html.
[iv] The Guardian, “Widespread destruction in Gaza puts concept of ‘domicide’ in focus,” December 7, 2023, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/dec/07/widespread-destruction-in-gaza-puts-concept-of-domicide-in-focus.