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Haaretz Falsely Claimed Netanyahu Was Open to Deporting Gaza Residents; He’s Not
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a press conference with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz in the Kirya military base in Tel Aviv, Israel, Oct. 28, 2023. Photo: ABIR SULTAN POOL/Pool via REUTERS
CAMERA’s Israel office prompted the correction of a report in Haaretz‘s English edition, which falsely claimed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the deportation of Gaza residents is under consideration.
The bogus Jan. 3 news item, which supplied false fodder to unfounded accusations of Israeli crimes (“Netanyahu: Considering scenario of surrender and deportation of Gaza residents“), fallaciously reported:
The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that a “scenario of surrender and deportation” of the Gaza Strip residents is being considered, according to reports on the Israel news channel 12.
In recordings from Netanyahu’s meeting with the families of the Israeli hostages that took place on Tuesday, the prime minister was heard saying, “We are not rejecting that possibility. There are claims to be made for and against it.”
But as Barak Ravid of Axios, and a former Haaretz journalist, rightly pointed out, Netanyahu did not say the deportation of Gaza residents is under consideration. Ravid correctly tweeted:
Indeed, Kan’s (Hebrew) report confirmed Ravid’s information that Netanyahu was commenting on the possibility of deporting Hamas’ leadership — not the territory’s civilian population.
Kan reported (“Netanyahu on the deportation of senior Hamas figures: There are discussions about this possibility,” CAMERA’s translation):
In a meeting today (Tuesday) between the prime minister and families of the hostages, Netanyahu responded to a question from one of the family members about the matter of deporting the Hamas leadership: “There are discussions about this possibility.”
Israeli (Hebrew) sites Mako and Ynet also reported that Netanyahu’s comment about the possibility of deportation was in reference to Hamas leadership, and not Gaza residents, as Haaretz had falsely wrote.
As Haaretz has repeatedly reported in recent days, the South African charge of Israeli genocide at the International Court of Justice must prove intentionality, which is established by the statement of Israeli leaders.
Chen Maanit wrote in Haaretz Jan. 4:
Proof of actions that constitute genocide in the ICJ requires two main elements – first, showing an intention to cause mass physical destruction, and second, showing that there is a causal connection between the actions on the ground and the intention.According to South Africa, the intention is learned from statements by senior Israeli officials. . . [Emphasis added.]
Thus, Haaretz‘s false reporting that the prime minister said the deportation of Gaza residents is under consideration provided tailwind for South Africa’s baseless accusation. Sadly, members of the gIsraeli overnment who fortunately have no say on Gaza policy have made statements in favor of deportation. But the claim that the prime minister made such comments is invention.
In response to communication from CAMERA’s Israel office, Haaretz editors deleted the false claim that Netanyahu was speaking about the deportation of Hamas residents. The amended headline no longer refers to “residents” but still fails to specify deportation of Hamas leadership: “Netanyahu: Considering scenario of surrender and deportation in Gaza.”
The revised accompanying text now states:
The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that a “scenario of surrender and deportation” in the Gaza Strip is being considered, according to reports on the Israeli news channel 12. The prime minister was most likely referring to Hamas leaders.
The “most likely” qualification is unjustified, given that the recording of the meeting with the hostages’ families revealed for a fact that the prime minister’s statement about the possibility of deportation was in response to a question referring specifically to Hamas leadership.
Separately, intentionally or not, Haaretz gives an additional boost to false charges of Israeli war crimes with Gideon Levy’s uncorrected report egregiously alleging Israel’s “killing of 162 infants in one day — a figure reported by social media this week.” Despite the fact that CAMERA informed Haaretz that Levy himself has admitted that he has zero source for this incendiary claim, editors have yet to retract his fabrication.
Tamar Sternthal is the director of CAMERA’s Israel Office. A version of this article previously appeared on the CAMERA website.
The post Haaretz Falsely Claimed Netanyahu Was Open to Deporting Gaza Residents; He’s Not first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Report: IDF Probes Whether Houthis Used Iranian Cluster Bomb-Bearing Missile
Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi addresses followers via a video link at the al-Shaab Mosque, formerly al-Saleh Mosque, in Sanaa, Yemen, Feb. 6, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
i24 News – The Israeli military said Saturday it launched a probe into the failure of its defenses to fully intercept a missile launched by Yemen’s Houthi jihadists, parts of which struck not far from the Ben Gurion airport on Friday night.
According to the Ynet website, one of the hypotheses being examined is that the projectile contained cluster munitions, similar to those used by Iran to fire at Israeli cities during the 12-day war in June. Cluster munitions pose a challenge to interceptors as they disperse smaller explosives over a wide area.
In June, Iran fired several missiles carrying scattered small bombs with the aim of increasing civilian casualties.
The IDF said on Saturday that its initial review suggests the ballistic missile from Yemen likely fragmented in mid-air. Five interceptors from various systems engaged with the missile, including THAAD, Arrow, David Sling & Iron Dome.
Authorities said that shrapnel impacted a house in the central Israeli moshav of Ginaton, yet no one was hurt, with the fragment landing in the house’s backyard.
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Iran Forces Kill Six Militants, IRNA Reports, Israel Link Seen
The Iranian flag is seen flying over a street in Tehran, Iran, Feb. 3, 2023. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
Iranian security forces shot dead six militants in a clash in southeastern Iran on Saturday, a day after armed rebels killed five police officers in the restive region, the official news agency IRNA reported.
IRNA said evidence showed the group was linked to Israel and may have been trained by Israel‘s Mossad spy agency. There was no immediate Israeli reaction to the allegation.
Another two members of the militant group were arrested, the report said. All but one of the militants were foreign, it added, without giving their nationality.
Iranian police said this month they had arrested as many as 21,000 suspects during the 12-day war with Israel in June.
Iran’s southeast has been the scene of sporadic clashes between security forces and armed groups, including Sunni militants and separatists who say they are fighting for greater rights and autonomy.
Tehran says some of them have ties to foreign powers and are involved in cross-border smuggling and insurgency.
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Benny Gantz Urges Time-Limited National Unity Government to Further Chances of Hostage Deal
Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz attends his party’s meeting at the Knesset, Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, June 27, 2022. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
i24 News – Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz on Saturday called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and opposition politicians to form a temporary national unity government to further the chances of bringing home the hostages held in Gaza.
Addressing Netanyahu, Yair Lapid and Avigdor Liberman, Gantz said that the proposed government’s two supreme priorities would be the release of Israeli hostages held by the jihadists of Hamas and instituting universal conscription in Israel by ending the exemption from military service enjoyed by the ultra-Orthodox.
Upon attainment of the goals, the government would dissolve and call an election.
“The government’s term will begin with a hostage deal that brings everyone home,” Gantz said in a video address. “Within weeks, we will formulate an enlistment outline that would see our ultra-Orthodox brethren drafted to the military and ease the burden on those already serving. Finally, we will announce an agreed-upon election date in the spring of 2026 and pass a law to dissolve the Knesset [Israeli parliament] accordingly. This is what’s right for Israel.”