The Media’s Starving Gazan Images: Narrative & Reality

Over the past few months, the news has been awash with reports on the unfolding humanitarian crisis in Gaza. The media has picked up every story put out by Hamas without any checking.

Even as Israel increased the level of humanitarian aid entering the embattled coastal enclave, gradually reducing the intensity of the crisis, the media has not slowed down its onslaught of coverage.

Traditional news sites and online personalities have attempted to illustrate the severity of the situation and to frame a narrative of famine by focusing on individual cases of malnutrition.

Analyses conducted by The Free Press, investigative reporter David Collier, and others have, however, discovered that many of those profiled have suffered from pre-existing conditions that have been exacerbated by the humanitarian crisis. In many cases, the media did not initially provide its audience with this necessary information. With the rate of interfamily marriage within the Gazan community, genetic illnesses are very common.

While there is no doubt that the treatment of these pre-existing conditions has been hampered by the ongoing war, as well as the stealing of aid by Hamas and local gangs, and inflated food prices, it was pure media manipulation to place a focus on already-sick people and attempt to portray their suffering as solely the product of Israel’s war against Hamas.

The following are some of those with pre-existing health conditions who have been profiled by the mainstream media and by influential accounts on social media:

Mohammed Al-Mutawaq His emaciated body was splashed across the front pages of a variety of newspapers, including The New York Times and The Daily Express. No mention of him suffering from cerebral palsy.

Osama Al-Raqab The images of five-year-old Osama Al-Raqab first appeared in the media in April and May. Suffering from cystic fibrosis, Al-Raqab was transferred on June 12 to Italy for advanced treatment. However, this did not stop some media outlets from using his image more recently, devoid of any medical information or context.

Karam Khaled Al-Jamal. In late July, Al Jazeera and Middle East Eye reported that 27-year-old Karam Khaled Al-Jamal had passed away from starvation and “lack of proper nutrition.” No mention that he suffered from muscular dystrophy and partial paralysis since birth. 

Abdullah Abu Zarqa In late July, the images of a gaunt 4-year-old spread online, including a video of him saying that he was hungry. An investigation by the IDF found that Abu Zarqa suffers from “a genetic disease causing deficiencies, osteoporosis and bone thinning.” Four months prior to the Hamas invasion of southern Israel that precipitated the current war in Gaza, Abu Zarqa travelled to eastern Jerusalem with his mother for medical treatment. 

Mosab al-Debs. 14-year-old Mosab al-Debs’ image was used by a number of mainstream media outlets, including the BBC, Reuters, and CNN, portraying him as suffering from malnourishment amid the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza. What these reports failed to report is that al-Debs was a special case, requiring a special feeding tube due to a brain injury he received a year prior.

 Hamza Mishmish. In a late July piece on the ongoing situation in Gaza, NPR attached a photo of an emaciated 25-year-old Hamza Mishmish being carried in the arms of another man, apparently due to “severe malnutrition and bone loss.” However, Hamza’s caretaker explained that he has an “extremely weak” immune system, suffers from cerebral palsy, and has been afflicted with other illnesses since birth. None of which was mentioned in the NPR report.

There is undoubtedly a serious humanitarian situation occurring in the Gaza Strip. However, the causes and the solutions are more complex and nuanced than the simplistic anti-Israel narrative promoted by the media and influential social media accounts.

When the media and online personalities try to deceive their audience by passing off photos of ill Gazans suffering from long-term ailments as evidence for wide-scale starvation and malnutrition in Gaza, they are not only misrepresenting reality but are falling short of their journalistic duty to report the truth.

For the full report from Honest Reporting, go to https://honestreporting.com/the-medias-starving-gazan-images-narrative-reality/