Numerous Canadian outlets, including the CBC, have reprinted a highly flawed Associated Press article that reports on Israel’s killing of 15 Palestinian medics and aid workers, based entirely on the Israeli military’s internal findings where they claim the incident as a case of “professional failures.” While AP doesn’t raise skepticism around this statement, they also minimize firsthand Palestinian testimony by the Palestinian Red Crescent Societie (PRCS) and its official rejection of the Israeli military’s report which it describes as “full of lies.”
Poor coverage – Media outlet to be critiqued
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Title of Piece: AP / CBC: Israeli probe into killing of Palestinian emergency workers finds 'professional failures'
Media Outlet: Associated Press and the CBC
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Comments of the CJPME Media Researcher:
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Numerous Canadian outlets, including the CBC, have reprinted a highly flawed Associated Press article that reports on Israel’s killing of 15 Palestinian medics and aid workers, based entirely on the Israeli military’s internal findings where they claim the incident as a case of “professional failures.” While AP doesn’t raise skepticism around this statement, they also minimize firsthand Palestinian testimony by the Palestinian Red Crescent Societie (PRCS) and its official rejection of the Israeli military’s report which it describes as “full of lies.”
- The article's headline promotes Israel's weak denial without context or skepticism. Contrast the AP's headline with the BBC's more honest one, "Palestinian Red Crescent says Israeli report into Gaza medics' killings 'full of lies'."
- The article offers extensive space to the Israeli military’s internal justification of the killing of 15 unarmed emergency workers amounting to a highly one-sided narrative.
On April 20, AFP published the PRCS’s response describing the Israeli account as: « Dans la mesure où le rapport est truffé de mensonges, il est nul et non avenu car il justifie les meurtres et attribue la responsabilité de l’incident à une erreur personnelle du commandement sur le terrain, alors que la vérité est toute autre », a déclaré dimanche à l’AFP Nebal Farsakh, sa porte-parole à Ramallah, en Cisjordanie occupée.
This translates to: "The report is full of lies. It is invalid and unacceptable, as it justifies the killing and shifts responsibility to a personal error in the field command when the truth is quite different," Nebal Farsakh, spokesperson for the Red Crescent, told AFP. This critical quote was accessible through other international wire services and should have been included. - The article also echoes Israeli claims that six of the dead were “Hamas militants,” yet offers no evidence. This parroting of state propaganda, without third-party verification, contradicts basic journalism ethics. AP also downplays the aftermath where Israeli soldiers reportedly bulldozed over the bodies and vehicles, burying them in a mass grave. This was mentioned without any reference to international humanitarian law, given these acts, according to PRCS, amount to war crimes.
- The article lacks balance. AP fails to include Palestinian voices, human rights organizations, or UN officials demanding an independent inquiry. The framing centers exclusively on the Israeli military’s perspective.
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