PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT: if you see some piece of info reported by the press from the Gaza Health Ministry then you can know that piece of information is not accurate.
It is a LIE.
It is part of the info war in an active war & when you see a media outlet report stats from the Gaza Health Ministry it shows their bias.
Some press try to justify this by saying the “Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry” but adding “Hamas-run” isn’t to scrutinize the data … it’s often to JUSTIFY their use of the stat for other reasons. It is no better. It’s often a disingenuous tactic at best but sometimes intentionally deceptive. It causes further harm to the Gaza people and prolongs a terrible war.
Most press isn’t objective these days, we get that, but when the press crosses a line is when they use information they know they can’t verify and which cannot be trusted AT ALL as the entire basis for a story. They know better and one should question their motivation for doing it. They also cross a line when they overly scrutinize one party but don’t scrutinize at all, or hardly scrutinize, the other party.
Have you seen anyone in the press absolutely grill the leaders of the UN or the WFP about the mass diversion of their humanitarian aid or how it has been used by nefarious actors or to prolong conflicts? I’ve never seen that interview, ever.
Many of these types of deceptive stories have been used (and are being used) to try and shut down GHF.
Imagine that? All we’re doing is getting millions-of-meals worth of free food to Gaza. But, they want to shut us down. Would they rather Gazans starve?
This is inadvertently (& and sometimes purposely) in the service of Hamas.
It is, secondarily, sometimes in service to a hidden but horribly corrupt NGO-racket which has to eventually be addressed mainly by American, European and also Arab funders (not our mission. Our mission is just to get free food into Gaza and we’re happy to work with established NGOs to do it more securely during this emergency).
These games are ultimately to the disservice of the people of Gaza who are the beneficiaries of GHF’s free food.
Finally, let me say again: no one is denying there are civilian causalities in the Gaza Strip and causalities among those seeking food. It is a hot war. We don’t want a single civilian harmed. We exist for people to LIVE.
But we have noticed—based upon our own information — that the nature, scale and source of the causality figures is being misattributed to GHF as part of an intentional disinformation campaign meant to shut us down. Even the UN parrots this
We don’t recognize, from around our centers, most of what’s being reported in the press
While we can’t control what happens outside of our centers, and especially in an active war, we expect and demand that the IDF do all it can to protect civilians seeking food as the professional military operating in the Gaza Strip and we also KNOW as a matter of fact that Hamas has and is intentionally targeting people in Gaza for seeking our aid and also those distributing our aid (and killed 12 of our hero local workers). Hamas is killing people and saying others did it.
GHF could have waited till a ceasefire to start feeding Gaza but they need food now! So, we persist & in as complex an environment as one can imagine
The net effect: food for over 50,000,000 meals in the Gaza Strip which otherwise wouldn’t be there. Every day, we show up to feed people while so many show up at their laptops trying to shut us down
A gut check question: how many in the press did you see report on the direct threat by Hamas against our local & American aid workers this weekend? (& we showed up anyhow).
I appeal to sincere people in the press and in all these amazing NGOs which do exist to save lives: please stop the games. Join us. We are far from perfect. We are committed to learning and getting better every day. We welcome your help.
We have the same mission but at least don’t lie about us.
