The Israeli Quotes That the Press Got Wrong - The Atlantic - "the NPR reporter Leila Fadel interviewed the international-law scholar David Crane about a disquieting subject: potential genocide in Gaza. Crane was uniquely qualified to opine on this fraught topic, having served as the founding chief prosecutor for the UN’s Special Court for Sierra Leone, where he indicted the president of Liberia for war crimes. On air, he explained why he did not think Israel’s actions met the criteria. “If I was charged with investigating and prosecuting genocide,” Crane said, “I would have to have in large measure a smoking gun,” which he characterized as “a rebel group, a person, a head of state” explicitly directing those under their control to destroy a people in “whole or in part.” Precisely because genocide is the highest crime, proving it demands the highest standard of evidence. What is required, in relation to the current conflict, is not simply documentation of destruction or war crimes, and not just incendiary statements from individual soldiers or politicians with no role directing military operations, but rather a declaration of intent to eliminate Gazans—not just Hamas—by the top Israeli decision makers. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Crane said, had not made such a statement, which meant that legal intent could not be established. By contrast, he added, “Hamas has clearly stated that they intend to destroy, in whole or in part, the Israeli people and the Israeli state. That is a declaration of a genocidal intent.”... On October 10, as the charred remains of murdered Israelis were still being identified in their homes, Gallant spoke to a group of soldiers who had repelled the Hamas assault, in a statement that was captured on video. Translated from the original Hebrew, here is the relevant portion of what he said: “Gaza will not return to what it was before. There will be no Hamas. We will eliminate it all.” This isn’t a matter of interpretation or translation. Gallant’s vow to “eliminate it all” was directed explicitly at Hamas, not Gaza. One doesn’t even need to speak Hebrew, as I do, to confirm this: The word Hamas is clearly audible in the video. The remainder of Gallant’s remarks also dealt with rooting out Hamas: “We understand that Hamas wanted to change the situation; it will change 180 degrees from what they thought. They will regret this moment.” It was not Gallant who conflated Hamas and Gaza, but rather those who mischaracterized his words. The smoking gun was filled with blanks. And yet, the misleadingly truncated version of Gallant’s quote has not just been circulated on NPR and the BBC. The New York Times has made the same elision twice, and it appeared in The Guardian, in a piece by Kenneth Roth, the former head of Human Rights Watch. It was also quoted in The Washington Post, where a writer ironically claimed that Gallant had said “the quiet part out loud,” while quietly omitting whom Gallant was actually talking about. Most consequentially, this mistaken rendering of Gallant’s words was publicly invoked last week by South Africa’s legal team in the International Court of Justice as evidence of Israel’s genocidal intent; it served as one of their only citations sourced to someone in Israel’s war cabinet. The line was then reiterated on the floor of Congress by Representative Rashida Tlaib. Politicians and lawyers are not always known for their probity, but journalists have fact-checkers. How did an error this substantial get missed so many times in so many places?... Unfortunately, this concatenation of errors is part of a pattern. As someone who has covered Israeli extremism for years and written about the hard right’s push to ethnically cleanse Gaza and resettle it, I have been carefully tracking the rise of such dangerous ideas for more than a decade. In this perilous wartime environment, it is essential to know who is saying what, and whether they have the authority to act on it. But while far too many right-wing members of Israel’s Parliament have expressed borderline or straightforwardly genocidal sentiments during the Gaza conflict, such statements attributed to the three people making Israel’s actual military decisions, the voting members of its war cabinet—Gallant, Netanyahu, and the former opposition lawmaker Benny Gantz—repeatedly turn out to be mistaken or misrepresented. Take the claim, also cited by NPR’s Fadel among others, that Gallant referred to Gazans as “human animals.” The defense minister has used this harsh language several times, and it’s reasonable to wonder whom he’s referring to. But as can be seen from the same Bloomberg video, Gallant uses this phrase to talk about Hamas, telling soldiers who fought off Hamas on the devastated Gaza border: “You have seen what we are fighting against. We are fighting against human animals. This is the ISIS of Gaza.” (Hamas’s atrocities on October 7 have been likened to acts of the Islamic State by both Israeli and American officials, including President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.) One can certainly take issue with Gallant’s language—for one thing, a nonhuman animal never executed a grandmother in her home and then uploaded the snuff film to her Facebook page—but not with the fact that the defense minister’s words referred specifically to Hamas... Far from being decided on the question of Gazan displacement, Netanyahu turned out to be malleable, and has since come out publicly against it under heavy pressure from the Biden administration. Diplomacy like that depends on an accurate understanding of the state of play. Finally, there is an error of biblical proportions... The verse from Deuteronomy that the Israeli leader quoted—which is explicitly cited in the official translation of his speech—recounts the time of Moses. Netanyahu’s critics mistakenly source his words to the book of Samuel, in which King Saul is commanded to wipe out every member of Amalek, down to their children and livestock. Tellingly, none of those citing Samuel ever quote the verses from Deuteronomy that Netanyahu actually referenced, which clearly illustrate his intended meaning... These omissions and misinterpretations are not merely cosmetic: They misled readers, judges, and politicians. None of them should have happened. The good news is that they can be avoided in the future by making sure to check translations at their source; pressing writers to link to primary sources when possible; and placing scriptural citations from any faith into their proper theological and historical context. Certainly, no outlet or activist should be cavalierly accusing people or countries of committing genocide based on thirdhand mistranslations or truncated quotations. Neutral principles like these can’t resolve the deep moral and political quandaries posed by the Israel-Hamas conflict. They can’t tell readers what to think about its devastation. But they will ensure that whatever conclusions readers draw will be based on facts, not fictions—which is, at root, the purpose of journalism."
Too bad nowadays the purpose of journalism and fact checking is to push the left wing agenda
Meme - Rachel Moiselle @RachelMoiselle: "For many years it's been apparent that, amongst left-wing people, antisemitism is an acceptable racism. The past few months has shown it goes further. Espousing antisemitic sentiment absolves you of other hatreds that in *any other circumstance* would be cancellable offences."
Cassie Pritchard (again) @hecubian_devil: "I feel like the trans community can give Norman Finkelstein a pass. He's like 75. So he's weird about trans people, whatever, his main focus is Palestinian liberation and he's like a laser beam on that so I personally am gonna overlook the weird shit he says about us"
Oli London on X - "Palestinian activists destroy famous Belgian cities steps by painting them in the colours of the Palestinian flag. The famed Bueren steps in Liège, Belgium have been covered in red, white and green paint by activists. The left-wing local government previously cut all ties with Israel in April 2023 and have been staunchly anti-Israel. The Mayor or Liege is from the left-wing Socialist Party. The group that painted the steps are demanding ‘decolonization’ of Palestine."
Meme - Licensed Memes: The Banterbury Tales: "As a MEMRI TV enjoyer, this seems very VERY disrespectful. (May both their flags be trod on by one hundred thousand shoes)
Revolution Blues: I am loving these steps in Belgium."
Hillel Fuld on X - "I truly don’t believe how everything that preceded the extermination of Jews is happening all over again. Almost an exact replica.
The dangerous rhetoric? ☑️
The scapegoating of Jews? ☑️
The blood libels? ☑️
Boycotting of Jewish businesses? ☑️
The verbal attacks in the streets?
The physical violence against Jews?
The political/diplomatic Jew hatred?
The cultural icons going anti Jewish?
Blatant discrimination against Jews?
Deafening silence from the world?
The list goes on, but to me, the saddest part of it all is that, just like in Europe, the Jews today are saying “It won’t happen here. It won’t happen to me.” Here we go again… Never again is now. Time to read the writings on the wall. How tragic. 💔 Then and now.
The top picture? Germany, 1940.
The bottom? Rome last week.
Same hatred, same poison, same Nazi salute. 🥺 One thing, however, is not the same and that is the existence of the modern state of Israel and the ability to defend ourselves with one of the strongest armies in the world. And so, in the most ironic way, those Nazi sympathizers? Those marching for the destruction of the Jewish state? Those very people are the biggest Zionists of all because while there are even some Jews who don’t agree Israel should exist, those ‘Anti Zionists’ remind us all why Israel MUST exist. So to all you Jew haters out there, I would like to, on behalf of Jews and Zionists worldwide, thank you for the important reminder that Zionism is necessary and the war against those who want Israel’s destruction, is the most just war in modern history. Antisemitism is the most effective reminder of why Zionism is necessary and why Israel must fight for its continued existence. 🇮🇱💪✡️🙏"
Brianna Wu on X - "Honest questions: @realDailyWire is the only publication covering that a Massachusetts teacher who openly praised the Hamas slaughter and rape of Jewish civilians was invited to speak to a group representing 100,000 educators to spread antisemitic garbage.
1. Where is the @BostonGlobe? Where is the @nytimes covering the wider trend in education of whitewashing antisemitism?
2. Where are the Massachusetts politicians that claim to care about our 5 percent Jewish population? This is one in 20 residents.
3. Where else will Jewish voters go except into the arms of the right wing, if the left wing is uninterested in standing up for them?"
In the replies of course there're left wingers claiming that if the Daily Wire says it, it must be false
Lubdha Khandelwal on X - "“3. Where else will Jewish voters go except into the arms of the right wing, if the left wing is uninterested in standing up for them?”
It is not just the Jewish voters, but really anyone who can no longer identify with the extreme leftist (I have stopped call them liberal) wing of the Democratic Party. And I say that as a voter of color and an immigrant who has staunchly voted D since I become a naturalized citizen a decade+ ago. I wrote a little about my ideological/party affiliation journey from being progressive/D to moderate/I while not all the way to being a conservative/R, yet."
ICCA Decries Wanda Nanibush's Departure From Art Gallery of Ontario - “Nanibush’s departure was first reported by The Globe and Mail, which described “years of outspokenness that caused friction with some at the gallery and in the arts community – which came to a head with the Israel-Hamas war.” Her departure came at the same time as a letter from the Israel Museums and Arts, Canada (IMAAC) and signed by its leadership team that accused Nanibush of “posting inflammatory, inaccurate rants against Israel” and “hate speech”.”
Weird. Left wingers are usually very supportive of de-platforming hate speech and listening to minorities
Thread by @Aizenberg55 on Thread Reader App – Thread Reader App - "Starvation & famine in Gaza is a lie (Part 3): UNRWA confirms entry of 11,360 food trucks matching COGAT numbers. UN WFP confirms busy food markets in Gaza even publishing food prices! UN's own data contradicts “intentional starvation” and famine... COGAT published on March 22 a chart showing food trucks entering Gaza since start of war at 11,065 matching UNRWA's 11,360. Israel is not lying as often claimed. Tons of food since 10/7 is double the amount the UN WFP itself says is necessary to meet basic needs of Gazans... This is just recent right? Only after world forced Israel to let in more food? No. Daily data for months shows more trucks into Gaza daily since 10/7 than pre-war. Here is sample data for Jan 31 (out of 161 rows of 3,333 pallets). Despite UN’s own data, famine lie continues. But no one can get food, right? Wrong. UN WFP actually issued a report in March showing the prices of food in Gaza. Food for sale – meaning it’s not a famine. WFP has been saying a famine is “imminent” for 5 months, now said supposed to happen by May. It should all be free and probably lots is, but Hamas & others steal aid and sell it. UN WFP says 1 Kg of potatoes goes for $2 and 50 Kg of flour for $50. Prices are dropping, see video. But lie continues that Israel is intentionally starving Gazans... Here is earlier Part 1 thread evidencing that starvation & famine in Gaza is a lie, by showing that based on UN WFP’s own statistics, Israel has provided 2x the food necessary for Gaza since 10/7 and 5x recently. Here is earlier Part 2 thread evidencing that starvation & famine in Gaza is a lie, by showing that UN WFP’s own report admits famine is not present and only imminent by May in north & July in south. It has been imminent for months!"
When you just want to stir up hatred against Jews and get more money
Rebel News reporter arrested at protest that delayed Trudeau event - "Toronto Police say they arrested two people at a pro-Palestinian protest that took place outside an event featuring the prime minister, and those facing charges include a reporter for online media outlet Rebel News."
Clearly pro-Palestinian protests disrupting society show that we need to crack down on the "far right". Arresting journalists is only bad when they're on the left
MPs demand bias inquiry as Mail reveals Gaza doctors at centre of harrowing BBC report are long-time supporters of Hamas... as these vile anti-Semitic social media posts show - "All day long on March 12, the BBC led its radio and TV bulletins with a shocking report from Gaza in which hospital medics described being tortured and abused by Israeli forces. Even for a conflict overladen with grim testimony and emotive images, this was highly charged material, the kind that could inflame communities in Britain. What was being alleged, after all, blatantly contravened the fundamental principle that hospitals – in this case the Nasser hospital in the city of Khan Yunis – should be protected in wartime. International condemnation was swift, with Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron among those demanding an explanation from Israel. The BBC has faced accusations of anti-Israel-bias and of fuelling anti-Semitism, so it was anxious to demonstrate that it went to considerable lengths to corroborate evidence. No doubt it was reassured that the claims came from doctors. Surely reliable witnesses? But a Mail on Sunday investigation has uncovered some disturbing truths about six of the eight medics interviewed – evidence that should, at the very least, have given BBC news executives pause for thought as they rolled out their scoop with dramatic fanfare. Astonishingly, all six have repeatedly spouted anti-Semitic slurs on social media, with posts ranging from the provocative and inflammatory to the downright obscene. Last night, our findings prompted demands for an independent inquiry into the BBC report. A peer said the corporation was being 'led by its nose by Hamas'. In one post, Dr Amira Al-Assouli (misspelled on the BBC caption), whose account of being targeted by Israeli gunfire was at the forefront of the BBC's coverage, plainly supports a Hamas rocket attack on Israel. 'O Lord, turn every Palestinian missile into a Zionist casualty, and turn every casualty into a thousand families that leave our homeland,' she wrote. In another she said: 'Lord protect our mujahideen [jihadi fighters] and support them with your angels and kill the Jews.' On the day of the October 7 attacks, the doctor posted a photo of a dead man, Fayez Saeed Al-Assouli, later accused on social media of taking part in the incursion. Dr Al-Assouli, a volunteer at Nasser hospital, describes him as 'the first martyr of our family'. Another doctor, Hatem Raba, wrote on Facebook: 'May Allah guide the missiles of Palestine's mujahideen.' Elsewhere he praised a terrorist who blew up a bus killing 38 Israeli civilians – 13 of them children – in 1978 as a 'legend' and a 'martyr'... 'Jerusalem and Gaza are in the camp of resistance. May Allah guide your missiles,' he wrote in 2021 after a Hamas rocket blitz on Israel. Last night, Jewish Tory MP Andrew Percy told The Mail on Sunday: 'The BBC seemingly doesn't seem to care that it keeps casually giving airtime to people who openly support the murder and assault of innocent civilians through terrorism. The BBC seems unable to appreciate that Hamas and their terrorist network have infiltrated every aspect of life in Gaza, even teachers and medical professionals, some of whom helped facilitate the October 7 attacks and hostage-taking... the MoS revealed that two journalists who worked on the report, Soha Ibrahim and Marie-Jose Al Azzi, had 'liked' posts celebrating attacks on Israel... Dr Al-Assouli's Facebook account includes up to 20 posts celebrating Israelis being killed in terror attacks or making anti-Semitic remarks. Yet she emerges from the BBC report in heroic fashion, having 'risked her life' to dart out of the hospital, amid echoing gunfire, to reach an injured man, her daring mission captured in a viral online video... This is the same Dr Al-Assouli who in 2014 warned Zionists that 'you'll die as cowards at the hands of our children', adding: 'And we promise you, for every martyr [killed], a thousand mujahideen will be born, and our land will spit out your bodies and you will wander the Earth as you had before…' The BBC also reported claims that the IDF detained and beat Palestinian medics during the operation at the Nasser hospital on February 15. Ahmed Abu Sabha, a doctor at the site, described being held for a week in detention, where, he said, muzzled dogs were set upon him and his hand was broken by an Israeli soldier. But in May 2021, Dr Sabha's Facebook account shared what appeared to be a pro-Hamas music video with the lyrics: 'The Jew defiled Jerusalem, ruled with tyranny, and oppressed… O mighty Gaza, the shelling is despicable, we will avenge the heroic martyrs a million-fold.'... Dr Mohammed Harara, who told the BBC how people who tried to rescue injured people in the hospital complex were being directly targeted, wrote in a 2015 Facebook post: 'Allah, save our Al-Aqsa from the filth of the usurping Jews.'... The horrifying social media accounts were unearthed by anti-Semitism researcher David Collier and investigated by the Arabic department of the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (CAMERA), a media monitoring group. A CAMERA spokesman said: 'With BBC reporters and BBC Verify fact-checkers alike either missing or deeming as irrelevant their eyewitnesses' support for murdering Israel's Jewish civilians, the journalistic failure here is multi-layered. 'If the BBC cannot deliver the kind of quality journalism the British public deserves in exchange for its licence-fee payments, this is a matter for their representatives to inquire and ultimately fix. 'Until they do, perhaps it is time for the UK Government to stop treating BBC Arabic reporters as a trustworthy news source.'... Sir Michael Ellis, the former Attorney General and a Tory MP, who has accused the BBC's 'biased' coverage of the war of contributing to record levels of intimidation and attacks on British Jews, said: 'The licence-fee payers can be grateful to The Mail on Sunday for exposing yet further evidence of an appalling state of bias at the BBC."
Clearly, if the Daily Mail says it, it must be lying, and anyone criticising the BBC supports fascism
Emily Schrader - אמילי שריידר امیلی شریدر on X - "If you’re gonna make up a story at least make it more realistic than “they unleashed their dogs on us to eat Palestinians” FFS. The projection of this mentally ill society of Gazans is truly worthy of psychiatric research. On another note, I look forward to evaluating the additional documentation, testimony, and witness statements from the Palestinians on the accusations of “rape.” As we know the entire time Palestinians and their “media” have been documenting everything with the cell phones they allegedly dont have electricity to charge. Surely there will be supporting evidence for such a grandiose claim. If it’s anything like previous accusations however, it’s simply a cynical ploy to distract from the mass campaign of sexual assault and rape which Hamas committed and has since ADMITTED in recorded statements as well as interrogations. This was also supported by subsequent witness testimonies and forensic evidence of sexual mutilated and assault."
Uri Kurlianchik on X - "The fake news about mass rape in Gaza had an ironic effect: it started a new exodus from the city. This reminds me of how exaggerated atrocity rumors spread by the Arab leadership in '48 caused thousands to flee instead of fighting harder. History doesn't repeat, but it rhymes."
Iron IIA Zionist on X - "We should have a bot army in arabic promoting this narrative"
Uri Kurlianchik on X - "We should have a lot of things. Israel is engaged in zero psyops, zero PR, and they just fired the only person with an iota of energy and charisma in this field: Eylon Levy. Some word beyond incompetence should be invented to describe how Israel handles these things."
Chilon on X - "We should spread fake news about Hamas being Zionists, maybe then Gaza will fix Gaza by ending Gaza."
OriZ on X - "Those israeli soldiers, such procrastinators. Waiting 6 months to start mass raping palestinian women. They also waited for the exact perfect moment to do it, during a fierce hospital battle in which 3 soldiers have so far been killed. Oh the multi tasking..."
Gad Saad on X - "Please remember: When Israel retaliates in Gaza and in doing so regrettably kills innocent people, ALL Jews are to blame. When 44,000+ terror attacks are committed in nearly 70 countries since 9/11 alone by Islamic terrorists, not a SINGLE Muslim is to blame."
81% of UK Muslims Say They're Muslim First & British Second. Much higher than France: 46% Muslim 1st - YouTube - "Why have our Police become so frightened of minorities? We live in a democracy and the Democracy means that the majority get to have their point of view."...
"The two tier policing that we have now in this country whereby if you protest certain causes you're treated with kid gloves and leniency where you're allowed to shout Jihad in the streets... but if you go on lockdown as we saw... there were 150 arrests during a 2020 lockdown March
Tracy-Ann Oberman on X - "Just been told by @metpoliceuk officer they can’t arrest anybody at these hate marches in london because there are too many haters. It’s better to gather intelligence & evidence later. Anyone else feeling like they’ve been thrown under a bus. @SadiqKhan @SuellaBraverman @CST_UK"
Met Police adviser Attiq Malik led ‘from the river to the sea’ chant - "A hard-Left activist who was filmed leading chants of “from the river to the sea” at a pro-Palestinian rally is an adviser to the police on their response to protests over the Israel-Hamas conflict... Attiq Malik, a solicitor who has also railed against “global censorship by the Zionists”, was present in the police operations room during protests... The disclosure of his role is likely to further embarrass the Metropolitan Police after weeks of criticism of the force’s handling of protests at which officers took no action in response to calls for “jihad”. It comes after The Telegraph revealed last week that Mohammed Kozbar, a prominent mosque chairman who praised the founder of Hamas, has been advising the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) as part of a “scrutiny panel” on hate crime."
Jewish boy with blood disease ejected from bed by pro-Palestinian nurses - "A British National Health Service (NHS) Trust is investigating allegations that nurses, while brandishing pro-Palestinian stickers on their uniform, forcibly ejected a nine-year-old Jewish boy with a blood disease from his bed... The boy, who was being treated at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, was allegedly “kicked out of his bay,” according to the boy’s Israeli-British uncle, Elliott Smus. The nine-year-old was identifiably Jewish as he reportedly wore a kippah and tzitzit, traditional Jewish clothing. He regularly attends hospital appointments as his rare auto-immune blood disorder requires him to receive blood transfusions every two months... When the boy attended the hospital without wearing clothing that identified him as Jewish, the family alleged he received “quick care”... After being kicked from the bay, the boy was reportedly forced to “lie on the floor with a canula in.”"
Visegrád 24 on X - "British nurses wearing pro-Palestine pins and other symbols forced a 9-year-old Jewish boy wearing a kippah out of his bed and down onto the floor while he was receiving receiving a blood transfusion at the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital. Great Britain 2024… 🇬🇧🇮🇱 *photos*"
Obviously, the kid deserves it for being a "Zionist"
Danny Morris on X - "Not a good look as pro-Palestinian protestors target a cancer hospital on New York’s Upper East Side. The Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center also houses a paediatric day hospital… “Make sure they hear you, they’re in the windows”."
They didn't get the memo that they were anti-Zionist, not anti-Semitic.
Uri Kurlianchik on X - "Last week was the "Return of the Jedi" moment of the IDF. At the start of the war, Israel slowly and carefully took over al-Shifa hospital, allowing the terrorists operating inside to escape with the tens of thousands of people who sheltered in the hospital court. Fast forward to March, laboring under the misapprehension that international pressure would prevent Israel from carrying out another operation there, Hamas and PIJ started returning to the hospital. Over a period of three months, they smuggled in weapons, comms, cash and militants, including many high-ranking field commanders. This allowed them to take over entire wards and turn the hospital into their base of operations in the north, secure in their belief that even if Israel attacked again, the militants could retreat just like last time. They were deceived. This time, there were far fewer civilians to hide behind, far fewer tunnels to flee through, and the sleepy-looking IDF in the area were prepared to spring. Fully armed and operational, if you will. Combining the swiftness of Shayetet 13 (the Israeli equivalent of navy SEALs) and the power of the armored 401st "Iron Tracks" Brigade, the IDF surrounded the hospital in less than 15 minutes, neutralized the enemy’s outer defenses, and cut their escape routes, leaving them no choice but to surrender or perish. So far, 140 terrorists were killed in the fighting and 360 were captured, yielding a wealth of intelligence for the IDF. This was probably the single greatest loss for Hamas and PIJ since the start of the war."
Terrorism supporters were very upset about the attack, of course
