Major international media have vigorously denied, in recent days, having known in advance that Hamas was going to attack Israel on October 7, in response to accusations targeting certain Palestinian photojournalists in Gaza and taken up by the Israeli government. Denials were published by the American media The New York Times and CNN, as well as by the three global news agencies, AP, Reuters and AFP.
The controversy started froma post posted online Wednesday November 8 by the pro-Israeli organization HonestReporting, which highlights treatment it considers unfavorable to Israel in the media. HonestReporting suggested, in an interrogative manner, that independent Palestinian photojournalists in Gaza employed, according to it, by AP, Reuters, CNN and the New York Timesmay have been warned of the attack in advance by the Islamist movement Hamas.
Widely relayed on social networks, these accusations were taken up by the Israeli government. “These journalists are complicit in crimes against humanity; their actions were contrary to professional ethics,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Thursday on the social network X (formerly Twitter).
“Israel’s internal security agency has announced that it will eliminate all participants in the October 7 massacres. The ‘photojournalists’ who participated in covering the attack will be added to this list,” said on the same network MP Danny Danonmember of Likud, Benjamin Netanyahu’s party, and former diplomat.
A “false and scandalous accusation”
“The Associated Press had no knowledge of the October 7 attacks before they happened,” responded the AP agency in a statement Thursday. “The accusation that anyone New York Times knew in advance of the Hamas attacks or accompanied Hamas terrorists during the attacks is false and scandalous,” he also assured. the American daily Thursday, stressing that this “endangered its journalists on the ground in Israel and Gaza.”
Reuters agency she “categorically denied having any knowledge of the attack in advance or having sent journalists with Hamas on October 7”. CNN also denied having any prior knowledge of the attacks. However, she indicated that she had ceased all collaboration with the main independent photographer implicated by HonestReporting, while stressing that she had “no reason at this stage to doubt the journalistic accuracy of the work” that he had accomplished in the past. AP also indicated that it no longer employs this independent photographer.
AFP reacted on Friday because, although not cited among the media pointed out by HonestReporting, it was questioned on social networks in France. “Any accusation of collusion between our journalists in Gaza and Hamas during the October 7 attack is vile and defamatory, and we reserve the right to take any action accordingly,” said the Gaza News Director. ‘AFP Phil Chetwynd. Photographers working permanently for AFP “were awakened by artillery and rocket fire, and they then went near the barrier between Gaza and Israel.” “The first photos near the Gaza fence were taken more than an hour after the start of the attack,” AFP said in a statement.
For its part, the press defense NGO Reporters Without Borders (RSF) denounced on Friday “the call for the murder of journalists” and judged that “the statements casting discredit on the integrity of an entire profession (were) unacceptable.”