For 24 long months now, Gaza has become the most dangerous place in the world to practise our profession. Israel prohibits foreign journalists from entering the territory, so the truth relies exclusively on Palestinian reporters – almost all of whom are members of the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate, affiliated to the IFJ. Too often they work without protection and without refuge for their families. And all too often, they are directly targeted.
So, all journos are locals. With their families and frieds – as well as themselves – all living under Hamas rule.
I would assume the same percentage of journos are Hamas as percentage of the population. But then I’d go further. Hamas are not known for being cuddly civil libertarians. So I’d assume that all output from journos accords with Hamas views. Not – necessarily – because the journos themselves are Hamas but because Hamas knows the journos, their families and friends and where they all live.
I’d expect simple self-preservation to mean that the news reported is the news Hamas wants reported.
As I’ve pointed out before we didn’t believe German media in 1944 (or Soviet in 1980 and so on) so why should we now?
And like Germany in the late 30s/early 40s or the USSR, what do we think would happen to foreign meeja who went in, unless they were (or even despite being) card-carrying sympathisers to the cause?
Israel knows. And while if you’d behave towards me the way to do to Israel, I would say “go on in, have a great time” but maybe they’ve seen too many dead already. Or maybe they’re just better than me.
Israel simply should let them in.
The ones that survive the “accidents” orchestrated by Hamas, are obviously not Journalists but enemy propagandists and as such legal targets.
After the first round there’d be a *lot* less interest in being a war reporter there,
They’ve seen what happens when they let them in. Far too many don’t consider the source, and act as if the propagandists are legitimate, unbiased reporters.
As such, targeting them just makes for more bad publicity.
Yes, not letting them in also causes more bad publicity, but probably not as much.
I suspect that Israel does not prohibit foreign journalists from entering. I suspect that Israel limits it to health warnings.
“We’re not coming to your rescue when you inevitably mess up, because you have the brains of a mantis shrimp and think everywhere is Martha’s Vineyard.”
“Evil Israelis making it too dangerous!”
Sort of agree with journalists having to sign a big fat waiver that the IDF in no way guarantees their safety and if there’s a targeting error (cos the kit photo journalists carry can look like a scope from a distance) then there’s no recourse to compensation.
Where does Hamas get its gun ands ammo from btw? If the blockade was so complete you’d think they’d be down to their last few days worth by now.
“ so the truth relies exclusively on Palestinian reporters ”
Are these journalist liars somehow different to all other journalist liars, then?
Good point!
The BBC seems to get in.
I suspect the BBS buys their footage from the locals.
Yes, but then they refuse to call Hamas terrorists and Bowen is always the first to gleefully spout Hamas propaganda.
The NYT managed to get some semblance of an anti Hamas quote from a local but I wouldn’t expect to see it on the BBC:
…with his six children.
Not much of a genocide, is it? Bolbol the Builder, can he fix it?
Can a tour in Gaza be made compulsory for journalists ?
That explains why so little truth emerges from Gaza. The hacks are Hamas. Pretending that there is some sort of gulf between Hamas and the general Gazan population is a Western delusion.
It’s the old fallacy that a lot of people succumbed to.
That “everyone is like me.”
Not everyone is. Not even close.
Yes…
Oh no, how sad.
It’s an interesting question whether journalists should be allowed to wander freely around war zones.
I say yes.
Dressed as combatants.
Hamas tells us Their Truth. Much like La Markle, eh?
And almost certainly much like Israel.
After that murderous attack in Manchester will 2TK rethink his “recognition” of Palestine, a policy that must surely be (i) dim-witted, and/or (ii) just a cynical attempt to court the votes of Mohammed, Muhammed, Mahomet, and the rest of the tiresome gang.
No!!!
It is very clear to me that Hamas and friends are doing nasty things to us whereas Israel and friends are not. That’s really all I need to know to make up my mind on who’s side I’m on
Starmer sent his Deputy (David ‘Genocide’ Lammy) to address the mourning crowd in Manchester. Spoiler alert: it didn’t go well.
I wonder if the reaction he got managed to work its way, even minutely, into his thick head? Were it not rather unlikely, I might think that TTK sent him there for a bit of a lesson.
“Frieds” to be added to the catalog of Worstallisms.
Does Egypt not let them in, either?
As I keep arguing, it’ll be impossible to eliminate “Hamas-ism” as there is a strong survival incentive to lie. You cannot see inside people’s minds, so you are forced to ask “do you want to slaughter Jews?”, and of course the questionee is going to see that if they tell the truth they’ll be shot, so of course they are going to lie.
Slightly off point, bit can I just express my disgust at Richard Murphy’s post this morning on yesterday’s stabbings, which I think plumbs new depths even for him. The obligatory statement that stabbing people on a synagogue isn’t justified (no really, Richard, fucking well done), the most perfunctory and short expression of sympathy, without any emotion at all, and then on to the long, rambling denunciation of ‘”Zionism”. He doesn’t even attempt to use an accurate definition, which would conflict with his straw man.
His commentators, Mike Parr and Pilgrim Sight Returned just went straight into outright anti-Semitism; didn’t bother stopping even to mention the dead.
Ironman
I posted on another thread – just shocking stuff but when people ask me why I consider him evil that is really concrete proof. Genuinely that reminded me of something out of the Nazi era. The sanctimoniousness combined with the genuine lack of empathy was actually quite chilling to behold.
Melanie Phillips lets rip about who she thinks is responsible (begins with S and ends with tarmer) on X.
I just looked at the IFJ website and searched for North Korea and even some rather lesser lunatics like Tajikistan or Turkmenistan so clearly they don’t get affiliate status for dictatorships ordinarily. The fact almost all the casualties are Hamas approved is completely ignored in the narrative.