Study reveals majority of Gaza war 'journalists' tied to terror groups

[Twiglets1]

Posted in Ynet today:

A new study has found that about 60 percent of the people described as journalists or media workers who were killed during the war in the Gaza Strip were Hamas operatives or members of other terror groups.

The research, published Thursday morning by the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, examined the identities of 266 Palestinians who were labeled as journalists or media workers and died in the fighting. At least 157 of them were operatives or individuals affiliated with terror organizations.

The study follows an earlier report released by the center in February last year that reviewed the identities of 131 Palestinians described in Gaza as journalists or media workers. The new research looked at an additional 135 Palestinians who have been killed since then and found that about 60 percent of all the casualties in this category were members of terror groups.

According to the findings, 104 of those described as journalists or media workers were Hamas members, including at least 47 who were part of the terror group or served as military operatives. Another 45 were operatives or affiliated with Palestinian Islamic Jihad, including at least 18 identified as members or military operatives. Two were identified as operatives of Fatah’s military wing, two belonged to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, one to the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and one to the Popular Resistance Committees.

The study also noted two media workers who were described after their deaths as military operatives, although their organizational affiliation was not identified. Among 109 additional fatalities examined, eight were identified with Fatah and seven with the Palestinian Authority. No affiliation was found for the remaining 94.

Researchers said the study was based on a list of media workers published by Hamas’ government information office in Gaza. The center cross referenced the list with reports from Palestinian media outlets and with a Hamas document uncovered by Israel Defense Forces troops during ground operations in Gaza. The document included names and roles of operatives in the Gaza Brigade of Hamas’ military wing.

Hamas considers journalists a critical part of its propaganda apparatus and its efforts to shape public perception and incite violence, the center emphasized. Terror groups in Gaza, led by Hamas, operate numerous media outlets aligned with them. Hamas leaders have repeatedly said that the media front is as important as the military one.

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hyjqezozze

Well, I never!

And bears shit in the woods.

We know what Hamas would have done to anyone publishing critically.

The IDF also revealed intelligence and documents seized in Gaza that confirmed the affiliation of several Al Jazeera journalists with Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. In October last year, the IDF published information identifying six Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza as members of the two terror groups.

In June this year, the IDF said it struck two Islamic Jihad terrorists operating under the guise of journalists in the courtyard of Al Maamadani Hospital. According to the military, the terrorists used the hospital compound to plan and execute attacks against Israeli forces and civilians.

In May, the IDF and Shin Bet said they killed Gaza journalist Hassan Aslih in a targeted strike in Khan Younis. He had operated on October 7 under the cover of a media worker and broadcast live images of the burning tank near the border. The military said he was a Hamas operative who took part in the October 7 massacre and uploaded footage of looting, fires and killings. After October 7, he was hired by CNN and later dismissed when his ties to Hamas became known. He had previously published a photograph of himself with former Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who was seen kissing him.

In March, the IDF struck a group of terrorists in Beit Lahia in northern Gaza, including one who had infiltrated Israel on October 7 and others posing as media workers. The military said the group operated a drone used by Islamic Jihad for attacks.

In December last year, five journalists from the Al Quds Al Youm channel were killed in what Palestinians said was an airstrike on a broadcast vehicle near a hospital in Nuseirat. The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate condemned the strike, but the IDF said the vehicle carried an Islamic Jihad terror cell.

In August 2024, Al Jazeera journalist Ismail al-Ghoul, a Hamas Nukhba operative who took part in the October 7 massacre, was killed. Two months earlier, journalist Abdallah Aljamal was killed after Al Jazeera distanced itself from him when it emerged he had held three Israeli hostages in his home. While the hostages were held in his house, he continued writing for Palestine Chronicle, a United States registered nonprofit.

In January 2024, Mustafa Thuria and Hamza al-Dahdouh operated drones for Gaza terror groups and were killed near Rafah. Al Dhadouh worked for Al Jazeera, as did his father, Wael al Dahdouh. The network condemned the strike at the time. According to the IDF, the two terrorists had used drones in ways that posed a real threat to Israeli forces.

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hyjqezozze

The study follows an earlier report released by the center in February last year that reviewed the identities of 131 Palestinians described in Gaza as journalists or media workers. The new research looked at an additional 135 Palestinians who have been killed since then and found that about 60 percent of all the casualties in this category were members of terror groups. (underline)
I don’t understand this part of the text. Who are these 135 Palestinians killed since when? Because we do know that far more Palestinians were killed since Feb last year?

I think realistically connections to Hamas in Gaza are probably as common as connections to IDF in Israel, no?

I know the people who need to read this won't bother to read it.

But still ... facts ought to matter to those who like to stress how many so-called "journalists" have been killed in this war.

Hardly surprising when the majority of journalists allowed to operate in Gaza are endorsed by terrorists and get killed doing their dirty work for them!

I don't know how naïve you have to be to believe that Hamas would allow any neutral journalists to work in Gaza who might be as critical about them as they are about Israel.

You're not understanding because you haven't read the article properly.

Hamas is an autboritarian terror organisation running a territort with no free press. The IDF is the army of a functioning democratic state with free press that has military service. The two are not comparable. A journalist in Israel is not compromised by having a relative in the IDF.

Exactly.

No chance of neutral reporting out of Gaza.

I'm deeply uncomfortable with how much civilian death is deemed acceptable in going after Hamas / Hamas associates... but there is absolutely a logic behind it... and most importantly this could have all ended much much sooner had Hamas just surrendered and disarmed. Theyre the worst thing that ever happened to Gaza. Terrible situation all round.

Thanks for posting xxx

The journalists in Gaza are presented as though they are impartial and their word can be taken as trusted.

But their journalistic integrity is severely compromised if they have ties to terror groups including in some cases having dual roles as both journalist involved in propaganda and operative engaged in fighting.

Yes- and this is tragic in a way too I think? Who knows what those people would have been reporting had they been free to report as they wish? Instead because of the association with terror they are targets. Tragedy all round.

Apart from those who were involved in Oct 7th. Thats not tragedy, thats justice.

Very hard to oppose Hamas at all though. Awful position for a journalist to be in.

I agree there is much that is tragic in the situation of Gazan journalists. I know they are afraid of the repercussions if they report anything negative about the terror groups, not just for themselves but for their families also. I've read interviews where they are saying as much.

I have sympathy for anyone who feels they have to be seen to support Hamas or one of the other terror groups in Gaza in order to survive.

No sympathy for anyone involved in killing civilians though such as on 7/10 or celebrating the death of innocent civilians.

I wasn’t comparing anything other than the breadth of contact within the two communities

https://fair.org/home/despite-history-of-fabrication-press-uncritically-covers-idf-provided-documents-on-hamas/

So 40% had no affiliation to any group but were murdered anyway?

They were killed while covering a war and in a war zone so it's not surprising if some of the civilians killed in the war were journalists.

But this article exposes why the number of journalists killed in this particular war seems disproportionately high compared to other wars. It's because many of the dead were not just journalists but also working as Hamas or other terror operatives.

I doubt if many people would genuinely be surprised at this.

Exactly. The least surprising story.

So the simple solution here would be for Israel to let independent journalists in....

Got to ask yourself why they won't.

I'm surprised it was only 60% considering every time a journalist was murdered it was presumed here that they were affiliated with Hamas . It means nearly half were independently trying to get news out of Gaza

no it doesn't necessarily mean that, it just means that 60% are known to have affiliations with Hamas or other named terror groups.

If you read the whole article the researchers said some individuals served as military operatives although their specific organizational ties could not be confirmed.

That's a separate issue and considering the uproar made about journalists getting killed even where about about 60% of them are found to be members of Hamas etc, the uproar if international journalists got killed would be massive.

Hardly a "simple solution" if Hamas and the IDF were arguing about which of them was responsible for the killing of international journalists.

Yes - Israel should be letting independent journalists in since the ceasefire, and not just in the ultra controlled way it is currently being done.

But also - this is a separate issue that the majority of local journalists have ties to terror groups.

If former Mossad members criticise you maybe not the most reliable source, definitely not impartial

The head of ITIC, IDF colonel Reuven Ehrlich, denied in 2018 that ITIC was a "public relations shop" for the Israeli military, but acknowledged that their reports "often happen to turn out to be very good material for public relations for Israel".[3]
Several former members of the Israeli intelligence community (Mossad, Military Intelligence, the Shin Bet, and Nativ) have criticized the "symbiotic" relationship between the center and Israeli military intelligence and the center's establishment, arguing that the connection of military intelligence with a propaganda body would be detrimental to "objective" and "ideologically unbiased" analysis.[4]

That should say. Even criticise you

@Twiglets1the journalists know the risks. Israel know they are doing wrong or they wouldn't try and hide it.