"I urge your newsroom to provide appropriate journalistic skepticism toward official military sources, particularly those with a vested interest in minimizing civilian casualties and to properly contextualize attacks on civilian infrastructure within the broader scope of Israel’s conduct in Gaza, referencing the well-documented pattern of destruction."
July 18, 2025
To:
CityNews Calgary (CKAL)
Dear CityNews Calgary Editorial Team,
I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) to express my concern regarding your July 18, 2025 broadcast that aired at 6:20 a.m. on CityNews Tonight Calgary which reported on an Israeli airstrike that struck the Holy Family Church in Gaza, the only Catholic church in the enclave, killing at least two civilians and injuring others.
While the segment includes emotional footage of the aftermath and statements from the Latin Patriarchate and the Vatican, it troublingly fails to scrutinize the claims made by the Israeli military. The IDF is quoted as saying the incident is "under review" and that it regrets any damage, without any journalistic attempt to challenge or qualify those assertions. Viewers are left with the misleading impression that this was a rare or accidental incident, rather than part of a broader and disturbing pattern of strikes on civilian and religious infrastructure across Gaza. This omission reflects a failure of journalistic responsibility to verify assertions and provide crucial context, in violation of basic media ethics as outlined by the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) and the Canadian Broadcasting Standards Council (CBSC).
Moreover, the attack is presented as an isolated tragedy, devoid of historical or situational context. There is no mention that Israel has previously targeted dozens of hospitals, UN shelters, schools, and places of worship in its 21-month military campaign in Gaza. Without this critical background, viewers are deprived of the necessary context to understand the scale and systemic nature of such violence, which international human rights groups have repeatedly condemned.
I urge your newsroom to provide appropriate journalistic skepticism toward official military sources, particularly those with a vested interest in minimizing civilian casualties and to properly contextualize attacks on civilian infrastructure within the broader scope of Israel’s conduct in Gaza, referencing the well-documented pattern of destruction.
I await your response,
Anthony Issa
Media Analyst
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East