Reuters on Sunday (Oct. 8) took only partial steps to amend its flawed coverage of Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip following Hamas’ mass, ISIS-like atrocities against hundreds of Israeli civilians in their communities.
Initially entitled, “Israel pounds Hamas after deadly Hamas raid as conflict threatens to spiral,” the Oct. 8 article had reported: “Unlike in some previous rounds of strikes, Israel’s military did not give advance warning of strikes on residential buildings.”
In fact, contrary to Reuters’ reporting, Israel did issue warning to civilians to evacuate. As the Associated Press reported the same day:
Early Sunday, the Israeli military issued warnings in Arabic to residents of communities near the border with Israel to leave their homes and move to areas deeper inside the tiny enclave. In previous Israel-Hamas fighting on Gaza soil, the Gaza communities near the border were hit particularly hard, both by artillery fire and at times by ground incursions. . . .
Israeli airstrikes in Gaza intensified after nightfall, flattening residential buildings in giant explosions, including a 14-story tower that held dozens of apartments as well as Hamas offices in central Gaza City. Israeli forces fired a warning just before.
Around 3 a.m., a loudspeaker atop a mosque in Gaza City blared a stark warning to residents of nearby apartment buildings: Evacuate immediately. Just minutes later, an Israeli airstrike reduced one nearby five-story building to ashes. (Emphases added.)
@Reuters, pls recheck your report that @IDF gave no advance warning to Gaza civilians to evacuate. Per @AP: IDF issued warnings https://t.co/UpcQanpjUH (1/2) pic.twitter.com/heWFlV218a
— Tamar Sternthal (@TamarSternthal) October 8, 2023
Moreover, regarding the Israeli bombing of mosques, Reuters neglected to report that the Israeli military identified the mosques as the locations of Hamas operational situation rooms. The article selectively reported:
In Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, people searched through the remains of a mosque early on Sunday. “We ended the night prayers and suddenly the mosque was bombed. They terrorised the children, the elderly and women,” said resident Ramez Hneideq.
CAMERA’s Israel office reached out to Reuters on these two points. While editors amended both the English and Arabic-language coverage to remove the erroneous claim about the lack of warnings before aistrikes, the news agency has yet to add the essential information that the Israeli military identified the mosques as housing Hamas infrastructure.