CAMERA’s Israel office prompted correction Thursday of an Agence France Presse article published at the Times of Israel (“Half of Israeli support annexation, most predict violence if it goes ahead“). The article erroneously reported that the Trump administration had recognized Israeli settlements, stating that Israelis “liv[ing] in settlements that are viewed by many as illegal under international law, but were recognized by the United States in November.”
The United States didn’t “recognize” the settlements in November.
As AFP accurately reported at the time (“In new pro-Israel shift, US no longer calls settlements illegal,” Nov. 19), the Trump administration stated that the new US position is that they are not per se inconsistent with international law.
In his remarks at the time, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo didn’t say a word about “recognizing” the settlements, unlike the administration’s earlier move in December 2017 to “recognize” Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
In response to communication from CAMERA, Times of Israel commendably corrected. The article now accurately reports:
The latter live in settlements that are viewed by many as illegal under international law; in November, the US position took the position that the settlements are not, per se, inconsistent with international law.
Contrary to common journalistic practice, editors did not append a note pointing out the change to readers.