Last week, CAMERA prompted corrections of an article in Haaretz‘s English edition which overstated Gaza’s unemployment rate as cited in a World Bank report. (The article originally erroneously referred to 70 percent, but the higher figure referred to unemployment among youth. The total unemployment figure, according to the World Bank, is 53 percent.)
Days later, Haaretz twice understated the unemployment figure cited in a report published by the Office of the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process. Two Haaretz articles erroneously put that figure at 35 percent, but according to the report by the U.N.’s Nickolay Mladenov, the figure is 53 percent (same as the World Bank).
A Sept. 28 article by Noa Landau (“Last-minute Efforts Underway in N.Y. to Present a Multi-million-dollar Gaza Aid Package“) erred: “Mladenov’s report states that Gaza’s unemployment rate stands at 35 percent.” The error had likewise appeared in Haaretz‘s Hebrew edition.
Similarly, a Sept. 29 article (“Ad Hoc Liaison Committee Raises $120 Million for UNRWA After Dramatic U.S. Aid Cuts“), also by Landau, erred: “Negotiations surrounding the aid package were led over the past year by the UN’s special Middle East envoy, Nickolay Mladenov, who stated in a report that Gaza’s unemployment rate stands at 35 percent and points at American aid cuts to the budget of UNRWA as a factor that contributed to this deterioration.”
In response to communication from CAMERA’s Israel office, Haaretz commendably corrected both digital articles, including in Hebrew. (There was no correction in the print edition, although the error appeared there as well. Also, contrary to standard journalistic practice, editors did not append a note to the online articles alerting readers to the changes.)