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New York Times Goes All In on Slick ‘Apartheid Roads’ Propaganda
Illustrative: Israeli forces work at the scene of a suspected terrorist attack at a checkpoint outside of Jerusalem, in the West Bank, March 13, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg
The interactive feature titled “Roadblocked,” published by The New York Times, is a visually striking and evidently resource-intensive project. With no fewer than five journalists’ bylines at the top, and additional reporting from two others on the ground in Israel, the 3,000-word piece comprises maps, videos, photos, and plenty of cherry-picked quotations that supposedly illustrate the system of “separate but unequal roadways” in the West Bank.
“In the occupied West Bank, Israelis zip along well-groomed roads designed for their convenience,” the piece opens. “Palestinians are shunted onto convoluted routes dotted with checkpoints.”
We are soon introduced to an Israeli and Palestinian, each living in the West Bank, whose daily commutes are presented as symbolic of this allegedly discriminatory road system.
The piece then asserts that since the October 7 Hamas attacks, the roads have become “more perilous for Palestinians” due to the threat of “Israeli settlers sometimes attacking Palestinian drivers.”
But because this is The New York Times — a publication that has repeatedly demonstrated its tendency to downplay or outright dismiss Israel’s legitimate security concerns — little attention is paid to the real reason these roads are designed in the way they are.
For example, a caption accompanying a map showing the diverging routes taken by Palestinian and Israeli drivers claims that the barriers and detours are “rooted in Israel’s decades-long efforts to restrict Palestinian movement, prevent attacks on Israelis and increase the Jewish presence in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since the 1967 war.”
The implication that Israel’s road network exists solely to “restrict Palestinian movement” for no reason other than malice is, frankly, absurd.
The truth, which the Times glosses over, is that these barriers and security measures were put in place to protect Israelis from terrorism. And, crucially, they likely would not exist if there were a Palestinian leadership committed to peace with Israel.
When @nytimes uses individual cases that go against the IDF’s own Code of Ethics to tarnish Israel’s entire army yet fails to address Hamas’ policy of using Gaza’s entire population as human shields, that’s not journalism, it’s a double standard. https://t.co/TnITu8Mmgv
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) October 14, 2024
Both the success and necessity of Israel’s security measures, including the completion of the West Bank barrier in 2007, are undeniable.
While the barrier significantly reduced the number of deadly terror attacks from the West Bank, the threat of terrorism persists. Last year’s spate of attacks on Israeli civilians, such as the murder of schoolteacher Batsheva Nagari, who was gunned down while sitting in a car, are reminders of this reality.
It’s also important to correct a common misconception about the roads. The difference in license plate colors for Palestinian and Israeli drivers — which The New York Times states is used to “differentiate who can drive where” — is actually based on citizenship or residency, not ethnicity.
Israeli citizens and permanent residents, whether Jewish or Arab, have yellow plates, while Palestinian vehicles have their own plates issued by the Palestinian Authority.
The conclusion of the piece is given midway through: Israel is maintaining “apartheid roads,” as per the view of the Palestinian Authority and so-called “other critics.”
That the Times could uncritically reference the Palestinian Authority (PA)’s accusation of “apartheid roads” without acknowledging the PA’s own role in necessitating the checkpoints and barriers is truly astonishing.
Let’s not forget, this is the same Palestinian Authority that operates a “Pay-for-Slay” policy, where terrorists who murder Israelis are financially rewarded. By offering stipends to those who commit violent acts against civilians, the PA actively incentivizes terrorism.
Finally, let’s actually debunk the apartheid roads libel — the “separate but unequal” system that The New York Times so confidently accuses Israel of implementing. The reality is far more complex and less nefarious than the piece suggests.
First, Israeli vehicular traffic is also banned from entering Palestinian-controlled areas due to security concerns. This restriction applies to all Israeli citizens, including over one million Arab citizens of Israel, who have themselves been targets of terrorist attacks.
Furthermore, all road closures are temporary and subject to constant review by the Israeli courts, ensuring that they are not permanent or arbitrary measures.
Additionally, under Israeli law, Jews are severely restricted in which roads they can travel.
It is illegal for Jews to enter areas designated as Area A — territories under full Palestinian Authority security and administrative control. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) cannot operate freely in these areas, even if a Jewish citizen’s life is in danger. Large red signs warning Israeli citizens not to enter these towns and villages are a common sight at the entrances to Palestinian Authority-controlled areas, clearly illustrating the limitations imposed on Israeli citizens, not just Palestinians.
But since when has The New York Times ever let pesky facts get in the way of an “Israeli apartheid” slur? The answer: Never.
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 New York Times Goes All In on Slick ‘Apartheid Roads’ Propaganda first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hamas Says No Interim Hostage Deal Possible Without Work Toward Permanent Ceasefire
Explosions send smoke into the air in Gaza, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, July 17, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen
The spokesperson for Hamas’s armed wing said on Friday that while the Palestinian terrorist group favors reaching an interim truce in the Gaza war, if such an agreement is not reached in current negotiations it could revert to insisting on a full package deal to end the conflict.
Hamas has previously offered to release all the hostages held in Gaza and conclude a permanent ceasefire agreement, and Israel has refused, Abu Ubaida added in a televised speech.
Arab mediators Qatar and Egypt, backed by the United States, have hosted more than 10 days of talks on a US-backed proposal for a 60-day truce in the war.
Israeli officials were not immediately available for comment on the eve of the Jewish Sabbath.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement on a call he had with Pope Leo on Friday that Israel‘s efforts to secure a hostage release deal and 60-day ceasefire “have so far not been reciprocated by Hamas.”
As part of the potential deal, 10 hostages held in Gaza would be returned along with the bodies of 18 others, spread out over 60 days. In exchange, Israel would release a number of detained Palestinians.
“If the enemy remains obstinate and evades this round as it has done every time before, we cannot guarantee a return to partial deals or the proposal of the 10 captives,” said Abu Ubaida.
Disputes remain over maps of Israeli army withdrawals, aid delivery mechanisms into Gaza, and guarantees that any eventual truce would lead to ending the war, said two Hamas officials who spoke to Reuters on Friday.
The officials said the talks have not reached a breakthrough on the issues under discussion.
Hamas says any agreement must lead to ending the war, while Netanyahu says the war will only end once Hamas is disarmed and its leaders expelled from Gaza.
Almost 1,650 Israelis and foreign nationals have been killed as a result of the conflict, including 1,200 killed in the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on southern Israel, according to Israeli tallies. Over 250 hostages were kidnapped during Hamas’s Oct. 7 onslaught.
Israel responded with an ongoing military campaign aimed at freeing the hostages and dismantling Hamas’s military and governing capabilities in neighboring Gaza.
The post Hamas Says No Interim Hostage Deal Possible Without Work Toward Permanent Ceasefire first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Iran Marks 31st Anniversary of AMIA Bombing by Slamming Argentina’s ‘Baseless’ Accusations, Blaming Israel
People hold images of the victims of the 1994 bombing attack on the Argentine Israeli Mutual Association (AMIA) community center, marking the 30th anniversary of the attack, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, July 18, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Irina Dambrauskas
Iran on Friday marked the 31st anniversary of the 1994 bombing of the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA) Jewish community center in Buenos Aires by slamming Argentina for what it called “baseless” accusations over Tehran’s alleged role in the terrorist attack and accusing Israel of politicizing the atrocity to influence the investigation and judicial process.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on the anniversary of Argentina’s deadliest terrorist attack, which killed 85 people and wounded more than 300.
“While completely rejecting the accusations against Iranian citizens, the Islamic Republic of Iran condemns attempts by certain Argentine factions to pressure the judiciary into issuing baseless charges and politically motivated rulings,” the statement read.
“Reaffirming that the charges against its citizens are unfounded, the Islamic Republic of Iran insists on restoring their reputation and calls for an end to this staged legal proceeding,” it continued.
Last month, a federal judge in Argentina ordered the trial in absentia of 10 Iranian and Lebanese nationals suspected of orchestrating the attack in Buenos Aires.
The ten suspects set to stand trial include former Iranian and Lebanese ministers and diplomats, all of whom are subject to international arrest warrants issued by Argentina for their alleged roles in the terrorist attack.
In its statement on Friday, Iran also accused Israel of influencing the investigation to advance a political campaign against the Islamist regime in Tehran, claiming the case has been used to serve Israeli interests and hinder efforts to uncover the truth.
“From the outset, elements and entities linked to the Zionist regime [Israel] exploited this suspicious explosion, pushing the investigation down a false and misleading path, among whose consequences was to disrupt the long‑standing relations between the people of Iran and Argentina,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry said.
“Clear, undeniable evidence now shows the Zionist regime and its affiliates exerting influence on the Argentine judiciary to frame Iranian nationals,” the statement continued.
In April, lead prosecutor Sebastián Basso — who took over the case after the 2015 murder of his predecessor, Alberto Nisman — requested that federal Judge Daniel Rafecas issue national and international arrest warrants for Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei over his alleged involvement in the attack.
Since 2006, Argentine authorities have sought the arrest of eight Iranians — including former president Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who died in 2017 — yet more than three decades after the deadly bombing, all suspects remain still at large.
In a post on X, the Delegation of Argentine Israelite Associations (DAIA), the country’s Jewish umbrella organization, released a statement commemorating the 31st anniversary of the bombing.
“It was a brutal attack on Argentina, its democracy, and its rule of law,” the group said. “At DAIA, we continue to demand truth and justice — because impunity is painful, and memory is a commitment to both the present and the future.”
31 años del atentado a la AMIA – DAIA. 31 años sin justicia.
El 18 de julio de 1994, un atentado terrorista dejó 85 personas muertas y más de 300 heridas. Fue un ataque brutal contra la Argentina, su democracia y su Estado de derecho.
Desde la DAIA, seguimos exigiendo verdad y… pic.twitter.com/kV2ReGNTIk
— DAIA (@DAIAArgentina) July 18, 2025
Despite Argentina’s longstanding belief that Lebanon’s Shiite Hezbollah terrorist group carried out the devastating attack at Iran’s request, the 1994 bombing has never been claimed or officially solved.
Meanwhile, Tehran has consistently denied any involvement and refused to arrest or extradite any suspects.
To this day, the decades-long investigation into the terrorist attack has been plagued by allegations of witness tampering, evidence manipulation, cover-ups, and annulled trials.
In 2006, former prosecutor Nisman formally charged Iran for orchestrating the attack and Hezbollah for carrying it out.
Nine years later, he accused former Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner — currently under house arrest on corruption charges — of attempting to cover up the crime and block efforts to extradite the suspects behind the AMIA atrocity in return for Iranian oil.
Nisman was killed later that year, and to this day, both his case and murder remain unresolved and under ongoing investigation.
The alleged cover-up was reportedly formalized through the memorandum of understanding signed in 2013 between Kirchner’s government and Iranian authorities, with the stated goal of cooperating to investigate the AMIA bombing.
The post Iran Marks 31st Anniversary of AMIA Bombing by Slamming Argentina’s ‘Baseless’ Accusations, Blaming Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Jordan Reveals Muslim Brotherhood Operating Vast Illegal Funding Network Tied to Gaza Donations, Political Campaigns
Murad Adailah, the head of Jordan’s Muslim Brotherhood, attends an interview with Reuters in Amman, Jordan, Sept. 7, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Jehad Shelbak
The Muslim Brotherhood, one of the Arab world’s oldest and most influential Islamist movements, has been implicated in a wide-ranging network of illegal financial activities in Jordan and abroad, according to a new investigative report.
Investigations conducted by Jordanian authorities — along with evidence gathered from seized materials — revealed that the Muslim Brotherhood raised tens of millions of Jordanian dinars through various illegal activities, the Jordan news agency (Petra) reported this week.
With operations intensifying over the past eight years, the report showed that the group’s complex financial network was funded through various sources, including illegal donations, profits from investments in Jordan and abroad, and monthly fees paid by members inside and outside the country.
The report also indicated that the Muslim Brotherhood has taken advantage of the war in Gaza to raise donations illegally.
Out of all donations meant for Gaza, the group provided no information on where the funds came from, how much was collected, or how they were distributed, and failed to work with any international or relief organizations to manage the transfers properly.
Rather, the investigations revealed that the Islamist network used illicit financial mechanisms to transfer funds abroad.
According to Jordanian authorities, the group gathered more than JD 30 million (around $42 million) over recent years.
With funds transferred to several Arab, regional, and foreign countries, part of the money was allegedly used to finance domestic political campaigns in 2024, as well as illegal activities and cells.
In April, Jordan outlawed the Muslim Brotherhood, the country’s most vocal opposition group, and confiscated its assets after members of the Islamist movement were found to be linked to a sabotage plot.
The movement’s political arm in Jordan, the Islamic Action Front, became the largest political grouping in parliament after elections last September, although most seats are still held by supporters of the government.
Opponents of the group, which is banned in most Arab countries, label it a terrorist organization. However, the movement claims it renounced violence decades ago and now promotes its Islamist agenda through peaceful means.
The post Jordan Reveals Muslim Brotherhood Operating Vast Illegal Funding Network Tied to Gaza Donations, Political Campaigns first appeared on Algemeiner.com.