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Media Outlets Quietly Stop Referring to the Gaza Ministry of Health’s Hamas Affiliation
Hamas terrorists kidnapping Israeli women at the Nahal Oz base near the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, 2023. Photo: Screenshot
In the days and weeks following Hamas’ October 7 massacre in southern Israel and the beginning of the Jewish State’s military response against the Gaza-based terror group, HonestReporting called out numerous media outlets for failing to inform their audiences that the Gaza Ministry of Health — a prime source for statistics on those killed and injured in Gaza — is run by Hamas.
Now, almost eight months later, it appears that some of these news organizations have reverted to ignoring the Gaza Ministry of Health’s affiliation with the terror group.
For a few weeks, @nytimes did the right thing and referred to the “Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.”
But it didn’t last long. Articles now appear to have reverted to type.
Because. New York Times. pic.twitter.com/msPocStlil
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) November 14, 2023
Following October 7, it took The New York Times more than a week before they started referring to the Gaza Ministry of Health as being “run” or “controlled” by Hamas.
They largely continued to use this terminology for months, until seemingly tapering off in March, appearing only once in April (in a guest essay by Israeli historian Benny Morris), and once in May.
A similar trend was observed with The Washington Post.
It took a couple of weeks into the war for the Post to refer to the Health Ministry as being run by Hamas (earlier articles published by the Post with this terminology were copies of articles by the Associated Press), and the last article to reference the control that the Gaza-based terror group holds over the Health Ministry was published on April 1.
Since then, any reference to the Gaza Ministry of Health or local health officials in The Washington Post is without the qualifying “Hamas-run” or “Hamas-controlled” terminology.
It also took CNN just under two weeks after the start of the war on October 7 to refer to the Gaza Ministry of Health as being under the control of Hamas.
The last CNN reference to the Health Ministry being “Hamas-run” was on April 6, 2024.
Why Does This Matter?
Global media organizations have relied on the casualty statistics released by the Gaza Ministry of Health during the war.
But failing to inform audiences of the affiliation with an internationally-recognized terror organization grants the Health Ministry an air of legitimacy and portrays it as an unbiased bureaucratic institution.
This, in turn, legitimizes the statistics being released by the Ministry, even though there is ample evidence that the Gazan health authorities skew the numbers in order to tarnish Israel’s reputation and harm the Jewish State’s campaign to uproot Hamas’ terror infrastructure from the Gaza Strip.
Alongside the fact that ignoring the Gaza Ministry of Health’s connection to Hamas is journalistic malpractice, what is even more concerning is the fact that The New York Times, The Washington Post, and CNN all used the terms “Hamas-run” and “Hamas-controlled” when reporting on the Ministry for several months.
This suggests that these three news organizations made an editorial decision to stop using this qualifying terminology when reporting on the latest statistics.
The seemingly intentional choice to obfuscate the Hamas affiliation of the Gaza Health Ministry not only does a disservice to the readership of these three news outlets, but it also calls into question the journalistic integrity of their coverage of the Israel-Hamas war.
The author is a contributor to HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.
The post Media Outlets Quietly Stop Referring to the Gaza Ministry of Health’s Hamas Affiliation first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.