Hamas Tested, Houthi Approved: Rebranding Terrorists as Journalists

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In recent days the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen apparently borrowed an effective propaganda tactic from the playbook of their Hamas allies in the Gaza Strip: rebranding terror operatives as journalists.

A screenshot of AP’s original headline

“Hundreds attend funeral services for 31 Yemeni reporters killed in Israeli airstrikes,” was the Associated Press headline yesterday, stating sans qualification or attribution the unverified and questionable claim that dozens of journalists were killed in Israel’s Sept. 10 attack on Yemen. In addition, the accompanying article omitted that Israel had targeted the Houthi’s propaganda arm, reporting selectively about the airstrikes:

In Yemen, dozens were reported killed, including the journalists, in the strikes that hit Sanaa, including residential areas, a military headquarters and a fuel station, according to the health ministry in the rebel-held northern part of Yemen.

The Israel Defense Forces’ Sept. 10 statement about the targets that day detailed:

The IDF struck military targets belonging to the Houthi terrorist regime in the areas of Sanaa and Al Jawf in Yemen. Among the targets struck:

• Military camps in which the Houthi regime gathered intelligence, and planned & executed terrorist attacks against Israel.

• A fuel storage facility that was used in Houthi terrorist activity.

• The Houthi Public Relations Department, responsible for distributing propaganda messages in the media and psychological terror. [Emphasis added.]

A screenshot of AP’s footage of the “journalists'” funeral. The Houthi slogan, “Allah is the Greatest; Death to America; Death to Israel; A Curse upon the Jews; Victory to Islam,” appears on the top left corner of the poster adoring the coffins

CAMERA yesterday asked the AP whether the news agency has been able to verify that the “journalists” killed are bona fide journalists as opposed to employees of the public relations department for the Houthi regime, whose slogan is “Allah is the Greatest; Death to America; Death to Israel; A Curse upon the Jews; Victory to Islam”?

Indeed, in the video of the funeral posted alongside AP’s article, the “journalists'” coffins are adorned with posters including the Houthi flag and the antisemitic, anti-American and genocidal motto. Notably, the article mentions the caskets while ignoring the terror organization’s slogan plastered on top of them: “Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV broadcast the funerals Tuesday, showing dozens inside a mosque and the caskets being carried ahead of the burial.”

Regardless, there is no journalistic justification to omit the fact that according to the Israeli military, the strikes hit the Houthis’ propaganda department. The information provides a minimum of context for readers to conclude on their own that Israel targeted propaganda operatives working for a terror organization, and not journalists.

Moreover, in its communication with AP yesterday, CAMERA faulted the headline which stated as fact “31 Yemeni reporters killed in Israeli airstrikes” though the claim is unverified information presumably originating (directly or indirectly) from the very same Houthi Public Relations Department.

Following CAMERA’s communication with AP, editors updated the article to include Israel’s fresh strikes on Sanaa’s capital, and added the following key information regarding the Sept. 10 of the Houthis’ propaganda department:

In Yemen, dozens were reported killed, including the journalists, in the strikes that hit Sanaa, including residential areas, a military headquarters and a fuel station, according to the health ministry in the rebel-held northern part of the country.

The National Museum of Yemen in Sanaa was also damaged, according to the rebels’ culture ministry, with footage from the site showings damage to the building’s façade. A government facility in the city of Hazm, the capital of northern Jawf province, was also hit.

The Israeli army said last week that it struck sites used by the Houthis to gather intelligence and attack Israel, a fuel storage facility, and a “public relations department responsible for distributing propaganda messages in the media.” [Emphasis added.]

CAMERA commends AP for adding this essential information. In addition, editors completely revamped the headline, updating it to reflect the most recent events and removing the reference to the alleged “31 journalists” killed. The updated headline states: “Israeli strikes the Yemeni port of Hodeida as Houthi rebels activate air defenses.”

In a new shortcoming however, though the article was last updated more than 12 hours after the Houthis responded with a ballistic missile attack, as of this writing, the updated report does not note the attack on Israel, which sent millions of citizens in central Israel scrambling for cover before it was successfully intercepted. (AP noted the Houthi’s Sept. 16 evening attack on Israel in a separate article.)

In response to communication from CAMERA’s Israel office, Times of Israel today likewise updated the AP article reproduced on its site to acknowledge:

The Israeli army said last week that it struck sites used by the Houthis to gather intelligence and attack Israel, a fuel storage facility, and a “public relations department responsible for distributing propaganda messages in the media.”