Dear Editor,
In journalism, facts matter. In its latest editorial, The Tufts Daily’s Editorial Board distorted the facts beyond recognition.
While the Israel-Hamas war has been deadly and taken far too many lives, it is not a genocide. The International Court of Justice, notably, did not rule that Israel was committing genocide. In fact, on Thursday, Joan Donoghue, who served as president of the international court until February, clarified in a BBC interview that the court “did not decide that the claim of genocide [against Israel] was plausible.” Rather, according to Donoghue, the court found that while not a party to the Geneva Conventions, “the Palestinians had a plausible right to be protected from genocide” the same way the citizens of any state are. It is misleading for the Editorial Board to refer to the conflict as a “genocide” based on the statements of individual UN experts who do not represent the organization when the organization’s principal judicial body has not formally made that decision. Cherry-picking the words of United Nations officials, while ignoring the words of the actual body, as the Editorial Board did, does not constitute honest journalism.
Furthermore, professor John Spencer, the chair of urban warfare studies at West Point, has written extensively about how “Israel has implemented more precautions to prevent civilian harm than any military in history—above and beyond what international law requires and more than the U.S. did in its wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.” Of course, that is another reason why no serious newspaper should refer to the Israel-Hamas war as a genocide without proper corroboration.
In addition, the Editorial Board falsely accused Israel of targeting journalists in Gaza and preventing the press from covering the war on the ground. However, spokesman Matthew Miller said in December 2023 that the U.S. Department of State has “not seen any evidence that Israel is intentionally targeting journalists” in the current war.
Moreover, regarding the 2021 media tower bombing that the Editorial Board invoked, the Israeli government claimed that Hamas terrorists sought to “jam” Israel’s lifesaving missile defense system in the very same building that housed offices of the Associated Press and Al Jazeera in Gaza. Israel did not deliberately target this building because journalists were present, as the Editorial Board suggests. Rather, Israeli forces identified the site as a military target and “didn’t know in advance” that journalists were present until they provided notice to those in the building prior to the strike. The piece notably omitted this report, providing an incomplete account of Israel’s actions.
Facts matter. The fact is that Israel did not want this war. Israel did not start this war. On October 7, Hamas instigated this war and violated a previous cease-fire in its murder, torture, rape and kidnapping of thousands of civilians. Israel has the right to defend itself in a way that is consistent with international law against a terrorist organization with genocidal ambitions. More than anything, the 133 remaining hostages must be brought home after more than 200 days in captivity.
Sincerely,
Tufts Friends of Israel
