"Homes have been fled, not because of an ambiguous “conflict,” but because of Israel’s disproportionate, deadly, and destructive military campaign. Please edit this obfuscating language to make your article more precise."
February 1, 2024
To:
Andrew Lupton, Reporter, CBC News
Brodie Fenlon, News Editor-In-Chief, CBC News
Dear Mr. Lupton,
I am writing to you on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East to make some recommendations on improving your article titled “Document requests holding up Gaza exit visas, lawyer says,” published on January 31 by CBC News.
Given that your article pertains to the recently implemented temporary Canadian residency program for Gazans with family in Canada, it is critical to provide context about the desperate situation from which they seek refuge. While you do provide some context, your wording works to subtly absolve Israel of its responsibility for fostering an incredibly dangerous and volatile environment for civilians in Gaza. You write:
Gaza’s health ministry says more than 26,750 Palestinians have been killed in a war that began with the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas. The vast majority of those killed are civilians.
Please rephrase your sentence to emphasize Israel as the perpetrator of these deaths: “…26,750 Palestinians have been killed by Israel in a war that began with the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas.”
Similarly, you repeatedly state that Palestinians have had their homes destroyed “in the conflict,” or have had children “killed in the war.” Their homes have been destroyed and their children have been killed by Israel. Homes have been fled, not because of an ambiguous “conflict,” but because of Israel’s disproportionate, deadly, and destructive military campaign. Please edit this obfuscating language to make your article more precise.
Thank you for making these edits promptly and meeting expected standards of journalistic integrity.
Sincerely,
Rose Mardikian,
Media Analyst, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East