The parroting of Hamas propaganda is an ethical crisis for journalism - The Jewish Chronicle

Our recent Henry Jackson Society report, Questionable Counting: Analysing the Death Toll from the Hamas-Run Ministry of Health in Gaza, sheds a harsh light on how media outlets globally have amplified unreliable fatality figures from Hamas, fuelling a dangerous spike in antisemitism worldwide. The team’s meticulous dissection of the data reveals glaring inconsistencies, exposing the perils of uncritical reporting that bolsters anti-Israel narratives.

At the heart of the issue is the Gaza Ministry of Health (MoH), an entity under the full control of Hamas, a designated terrorist organisation by many Western governments. The report demonstrates how the MoH inflates civilian casualties through numerous statistical distortions. For instance, men of combat age have been mislabelled as women and children, cancer patients have been included in war casualty counts, and even natural deaths have been misclassified as fatalities resulting from Israeli military actions. Record keeping in a war zone is undeniably challenging. These may be innocent mistakes rather than manipulation. Either way, they make the figures totally unreliable.

Despite these obvious errors, international media overwhelmingly relies on MoH figures. Our partners fifty.global identified 98 per cent of surveyed outlets citing Hamas’ figures without scrutiny. Worse, these numbers are often presented as undisputed, even though they omit critical distinctions between civilian and combatant deaths. The report corroborates IDF estimates that over 17,000 Hamas combatants have been killed in the conflict — a figure largely excluded from global reporting.

The impact of uncritically reporting these flawed figures extends beyond misinformation; it has stoked antisemitic rhetoric and violence globally. By perpetuating narratives that disproportionately cast Israel as the aggressor and dismiss Hamas’ culpability, media outlets have legitimised hatred against the Jewish diaspora. Many reports emphasise inflated civilian casualties while ignoring or questioning Israel’s data on militant fatalities, further skewing public perception.

This shameful and irresponsible media bias emboldens antisemitic conspiracies and justifies hostility toward Jewish individuals and communities, conflating criticism of Israeli policies with outright bigotry. The surge in antisemitic attacks worldwide underscores the dangerous real-world consequences of disseminating unverified figures that paint an incomplete picture of the conflict.

Accurate fatality data is not just an academic exercise — it is essential for fair reporting and policy-making regarding Israel. International humanitarian law acknowledges civilian harm as an inevitable consequence of war, provided efforts are made to minimise it. However, by inflating the proportion of civilian casualties, Hamas has manipulated perceptions to vilify Israel on the global stage. This tactic not only undermines Israel’s right to self-defence. It also obscures the role of Hamas in exacerbating civilian suffering through their deliberate strategy of the human sacrifice of Gaza’s civilian population.

The irresponsible reporting of fatality statistics also erodes trust in journalism, a cornerstone of democratic societies. The media’s uncritical acceptance of MoH data, combined with its reluctance to challenge Hamas’ propaganda, reveals a failure to uphold basic journalist standards of accuracy and impartiality. This negligence allows Hamas to weaponise casualty figures as a tool of psychological and political warfare.

The responsibility to counter disinformation lies with the global media. We hope this report serves as a wake-up call to journalists and editors who must exercise greater diligence in verifying sources, especially in conflict zones. Failing to do so risks perpetuating false narratives with devastating consequences for public trust and global stability.

By taking Hamas’ numbers at face value, the media undermines its credibility and amplifies a biased narrative that distorts the realities on the ground. Journalists must scrutinise all sources of data with equal rigour, ensuring that the public receives an accurate, nuanced understanding of conflicts like the one in Gaza.

The misreporting of Gaza’s fatality figures is more than a journalistic failure; it is an ethical crisis that has fuelled global antisemitism and polarised international discourse. Our report is a vital reminder that truth is the first casualty of war, and it falls to the media to guard it zealously. In a world increasingly shaped by disinformation, upholding journalistic integrity is not just a professional duty — it is a moral imperative. After 14 months of antisemitism sparked by irresponsible reporting of the war in Gaza, the Jewish community in the UK knows that better than anyone.

Andrew Fox is a former paratrooper, now a research fellow at the Henry Jackson Society.

Topics:

Gaza war