"In the interest of accuracy and fairness, please introduce the Palestinian death toll earlier and present it as accurately as possible, using sources like the AP, the Gaza Health Ministry, or the UN."
January 9, 2024
To:
Alex Ballingall, Toronto Star
Donovan Vincent, Toronto Star
Dear Alex Ballingall and Donovan Vincent,
I’m writing to note some issues with the article “Trudeau government silent on genocide allegations against Israel at UN court,” published January 9, 2024.
Your article buries the Palestinian death toll at the very end. It appears in a quote from a Turkish official but appears to be inaccurate. The official claims that “more than 22,000 Palestinian civilians” have been killed by Israel. The Associated Press reported on January 10 that Israel has killed “more than 23,200 Palestinians,” but does not claim them all as civilians. The exact number of civilians killed is currently unknown, but it has been generally reported that about 70% of casualties are women and children.
In the interest of accuracy and fairness, please introduce the Palestinian death toll earlier and present it as accurately as possible, using sources like the AP, the Gaza Health Ministry, or the UN.
It is odd that you fail to mention Canada’s opposition to the International Criminal Court’s investigation into Israeli war crimes in Gaza. Trudeau’s letter to the ICC on February 14, 2024, is pertinent context.
It is important to make reference to the ICC case and Canada’s stance.
I also want to emphatically file my disappointment with the lack of description of the actual case presented by South Africa. You sum it up only with vague quotes and very limited examples. South Africa’s 84-page filing includes remarkable allegations. Numerous Israeli ministers have made shocking genocidal comments. The scale of destruction in Gaza is dramatic, with the EU’s top diplomat saying it is worse than the destruction caused to Germany in World War II. Numerous studies from respected human rights groups and investigative journalists have laid these realities out in clear terms. An article about the ICJ case ought to at least touch on some of this.
Readers walk away from your article without information regarding Canada’s position towards a similar case at the ICC, and with only the vaguest sense of the claims contained in South Africa’s filing that excludes some of the strongest aspects.
I strongly recommend an additional paragraph with more clear descriptions of the allegations of genocide made against Israel.
Sincerely,
Jason Toney
Director of Media Advocacy, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East