"According to Al Jazeera, in his 2019 campaign for the Israeli parliament, Gantz released a video showing black-and-white images of destruction in Gaza from a campaign he oversaw as army chief of staff, claiming he wants to send Palestinians “back to the Stone Age.” Analysts believe Gantz would not necessarily change Netanyahu’s policies, which have led to a record number of Palestinian killings and the entrenchment of occupation in the West Bank. He has also led two wars on Gaza and designated Palestinian human rights organizations as “terrorist” groups, showing he is unlikely to improve the situation for Palestinians living under Israeli occupation. Given his track record, it’s incorrect to label Gantz as a moderate."
June 12, 2024
To:
Melanie Lidman, Freelance Journalist
John Daniszewski, Vice President and Editor at Large for Standards, Associated Press
Josef Federman, News Director, Jerusalem, Associated Press
Nicole Meir, Media Relations Manager, Associated Press
Associated Press Newsroom
Dear Mrs. Lidman, Mr. Daniszewski, Mr. Federman, Mrs. Meir and the AP Newsroom, I am writing to express my concern regarding your recent article titled “Centrist Benny Gantz is quitting Israel’s war Cabinet, citing frustrations with Netanyahu” published by The Associated Press on June 9, 2024.
First, I take issue with your headline. Branding Benny Gantz as a centrist is misleading, given his public record and views on Palestinians.
According to Al Jazeera, in his 2019 campaign for the Israeli parliament, Gantz released a video showing black-and-white images of destruction in Gaza from a campaign he oversaw as army chief of staff, claiming he wants to send Palestinians “back to the Stone Age.” Analysts believe Gantz would not necessarily change Netanyahu’s policies, which have led to a record number of Palestinian killings and the entrenchment of occupation in the West Bank. He has also led two wars on Gaza and designated Palestinian human rights organizations as “terrorist” groups, showing he is unlikely to improve the situation for Palestinians living under Israeli occupation.
Human rights organizations have also documented multiple human rights violations during both his military campaigns.
Given his track record, it’s incorrect to label Gantz as a moderate. CJPME demands you drop the claim that Gantz is a centrist in your headline and the rest of your article.
Additionally, your article frames the Nuseirat refugee camp massacre as a “rescue mission.” This phrase is unacceptable and must be changed. To frame a massacre that killed over 274 Palestinians, including 64 children, and injured 689 others as a successful rescue mission is a glaring misconstruction of fact.
According to a report by Mondoweiss, the Israeli military disguised themselves in civilian clothes, used Palestinian cars, and moved among the people without warning, catching the population by surprise. Special forces hidden among civilians revealed themselves only once the operation began, while other forces stormed in disguised vehicles. The assault involved helicopters, fighter planes, artillery, and tanks, resulting in massacres against the civilian population. The Gaza Ministry of Health reported that many of the bodies brought to the hospital were dismembered or mere body parts. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said Israel’s actions in this case may amount to war crimes.
I am urging you to alter the article and use more fair and balanced language to describe what is widely known as the Nuseirat refugee camp massacre.
For the four Israelis who were returned to their families, countless Palestinians will never see their loved ones again, as they perished in this massacre.
I also take immense issue with the contextual framing of the genocide in Gaza as starting when "Hamas took some 250 hostages during the Oct. 7 attack that killed about 1,200 people.” The notion that the conflict started on October 7, rather than after decades of occupation, reflects a one-sided perspective. Most Palestinians see the events in Gaza as part of a long history of occupation, not the result of one single attack by Hamas. History did not start on October 7. I’m disappointed you parrot the Israeli perspective of the situation in Gaza rather than being neutral. A more balanced account would reflect these stark differences in perspective and mention the decades of Israeli military occupation of Palestine.
Moreover, I take issue with your claim that “at least 36,700 Palestinians have been killed in the fighting, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between fighters and civilians.” Your claim that the health ministry does not distinguish between fighters and civilians is untrue or at least misleading. UNOCHA reports casualties in Gaza, distinguishing between military-age men, children, women, and the elderly. Women, children, and the elderly are civilians. These three categories constitute the majority of the deaths in Gaza. On June 9, 2024, UNOCHA reported the following death toll: 10,006 men, 7,797 children, 4,959 women, and 1,924 elderly. This means that women, children, and the elderly (civilians) constitute 60 percent of the identified death toll. That means at least 60 percent of the deaths are civilian, with a proportion of the male death toll likely driving that percentage up considerably. Over 10,000 Palestinian victims remain unidentified due to the collapse of the healthcare system and other restrictions.
CJPME asks that you correct your claim. Update your article to make it clear that Gaza’s health ministry does categorize identified deaths, including civilian categories.
CJPME cannot stress enough that you pay special attention to this matter. We demand you make the necessary corrections and revisions to ensure a clear presentation of this genocide.
I await your response,
Anthony Issa
Media Analyst
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East