The Media Accountability Project  

"I urge the AP to be far more skeptical of Israeli military sources when it reports on developments related to Israel-Palestine.  The Washington Post’s recent analysis of the March 16 raid in Jenin which led to the murder of 14-year-old Omar Awadin provides a case study in how Israeli military sources can provide highly misleading accounts of the actions of their forces.  So much about the current story makes the Israeli account extremely suspect, and results in the AP article likely serving as a whitewash of the actual events."

"I’m not particularly interested in being a spokesperson for Roger Waters. His controversial status is well deserved. However, given the waves of misinformation following his recent Berlin concert and the subsequent misrepresentation of his performance, I feel compelled to try to provide some basic information that Michael Levitt left out."

"The Tower of David Museum sits atop an ancient citadel which had a dome and crescent that were removed by the Israeli Antiquities Authority. According to Middle East Monitor, the $50 million renovation of the citadel resulted in “wiping out all Islamic features which confirm its Islamic identity.” This destruction of historic constructions dating back to the Ayyubid, Mamluk and Ottoman dynasties demonstrates the efforts to demographically alter Jerusalem and solidify an Israeli narrative that is contradictory to history."

On May 25, 2023, the Toronto Star published an article on a forthcoming visit to Canada by Israel’s Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli. The article touched on Chikli’s far-right positions and associations but did not include any context about his racist and dangerous views against Palestinians. Chikli has called for the elimination of the Palestinian national identity, called Palestinian society “barbaric,” repeatedly compared Palestinians to Nazis, and says that annexing the occupied West Bank is “excellent." CJPME wrote to the Toronto Star on May 26 to request the inclusion of this information, noting that "Chikli and his far-right government present serious harms to many different groups of people, and Palestinians cannot be left out of this conversation.”

Following CJPME’s complaint, the article was updated later that day to note that “Chikli has also been called out by his critics for making anti-Palestinian remarks.” An editor’s note was added to say that “This story has been updated to provide more background on Amichai Chikli.”

CJPME had also taken issue with the Toronto Star’s description of Jerusalem Day, which was only described from Israel’s perspective as the “unification” of Jerusalem. CJPME requested an update to note that “unification” refers to the occupation and illegal annexation of East Jerusalem, but this change has not yet been made.

"The current Israeli political leadership is packed with racists and homophobes like Chikli and Cohen; it’s a government that Canada should have nothing to do with.  The Trudeau government must, once and for all, declare a boycott of Israel’s extreme right-wing leadership."

"Chikli and his far-right government present serious harms to many different groups of people, and Palestinians cannot be left out of this conversation. As a people under Israeli occupation and apartheid, the Palestinians must be included in all reporting on this subject."

"In past articles, you have done more to explain to the reader what collective punishment is and the impact it has on Palestinians. It is a violation of Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention as well as many other international laws. Please provide readers with a definition of collective punishment that makes reference to international law."

I appreciate that the article quoted Palestinian U.N. Ambassador Riyad Mansour who raised concerns about the importance of internationally commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Nakba both as a historical and ongoing injustice, as many Palestinians continue to be forcibly expelled from their land for the establishment of Jewish-Israeli settlements. I am glad that you quoted Palestinian foreign minister Riyad Malki who pointed to the failure of the international community and the U.N. to hold Israel accountable.

I greatly appreciate your coverage of The Committee to Protect Journalists’ report on the targeting of journalists in occupied Palestinian territories by Israeli forces. This is especially pertinent ahead of the one-year anniversary of the killing of veteran Al-Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh who was shot and killed while covering an Israeli raid on the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. It is important for Canadian audiences to be aware of the violations of press freedoms by the Israeli military.

"Your headline “Israeli strikes in Gaza kills 3 senior militants, 10 others” is gravely misleading as you fail to mention that the “10 others” were Palestinian civilians. By omitting the fact that 10 civilians were killed in Israel’s latest airstrike attack on Gaza, you are presenting the narrative preferred by the Israeli military, which says that any Palestinian living in Gaza is a “target.” In reality, 4 of the 10 civilians killed were children and another 4 were women."