The families of five victims who were killed during the October 7 attack at the Nova music festival in Israel have filed a case against two prominent news agencies over accusations the outlets employed journalists who were linked to the Palestinian outfit responsible for the deadly assault, according to a report.
The filing alleges that two agencies hired Hamas-affiliated journalists from Gaza who knew that the surprise attack was coming and failed to prevent horrific crimes from happening, the New York Post reported citing World Israel News. The Associated Press and Reuters allegedly published reports and photographs taken by the Hamas-affiliated journalists as they partook in the attacks on Israel. The news organisations “are liable for the direct and indirect damage and actions of their ‘journalists’,” according to the lawsuit.
‘No doubt’
“Any excuse or justification that could be raised claiming the rules of journalism, such as the right of the public to know, cannot justify a situation whereby a reporter for one of the agencies would be present, participate and film the commission of a serious crime, such as the abduction of an elderly woman from her home,” the lawsuit states, according to The Post. “There is no doubt that the ‘journalists’ who were present at the massacre could have assisted the victims and notified Israeli authorities in advance so that the atrocities would have been prevented.”
The suit was bought by the families of five people who were killed at the Nova music festival outside of Re’im. This comes as comes months after pro-Israel media watchdog, Honest Reporting, reported that four Gazan journalists and photojournalists were embedded with Hamas militants on October 7th. The group speculated that six Gaza-based photographers had advanced knowledge of the attack because they were early to the scene.
Agencies deny allegations
The four journalists, named in the lawsuit, were reported to have ties to Reuters, AP, The New York Times, and CNN. Akin to other publications, Reuters has vehemently rejected the allegations raised by the lawsuit and slammed such reports. “We dispute, in the strongest terms, any allegation that Reuters aided and abetted terrorism or provided support to terrorists,” a Reuters spokesperson told The Post in a statement. “Reuters is committed to reporting news fairly, accurately and independently in keeping with the Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
“Reuters categorically denies that it had prior knowledge of the attack or that we embedded journalists with Hamas on October 7,” Reuters said. The news agency accused the Israeli watchdog of irresponsible speculation. Similarly, AP claimed in a statement last week the outlet had “no advance knowledge of the Oct. 7 attacks, nor have we seen any evidence – including in the lawsuit – that the freelance journalists who contributed to our coverage did. Allegations like this are reckless and create even more potential danger for journalists in the region.”
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