Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused The New York Times of slander against Israel in their reporting on famine in Gaza, and is considering taking legal action. In an interview with Fox News on the 7th, he said, “The New York Times should be sued. I am studying whether a country can sue The New York Times… This is blatant slander.”
The controversy stemmed from The New York Times’ front-page report on July 24th. The article featured a photo of a malnourished 18-month-old boy, Mohammed Zakaria al-Mutawaq, with his mother claiming he was healthy at birth but later suffered severe malnutrition. It was later revealed that the child had cerebral palsy and complications from a genetic disease, details that were not initially mentioned in the original report and photo caption.
On July 30th, The New York Times updated the report, added editor’s notes clarifying the medical history, and removed the mother’s claims. However, Netanyahu criticized the correction as being “buried deep in the newspaper”, unable to undo the damage. He emphasized that Israel is not implementing a starvation policy in Gaza, and the shortages are due to Hamas’ theft or diversion of supplies.
The New York Times defended its reporting by stating that the annotations reflected new information obtained after publication, and the core report remained accurate. A spokesperson pointed out that malnutrition and hunger issues among Gaza children do exist, rebuffing Netanyahu’s criticism of the handling of the correction and condemning his attempts to threaten independent media.
This controversy has sparked wider debate. Aid organizations and UN reports have indicated severe shortages of food, water, and medicine in Gaza, exacerbated by the conflict. Israel has accused Hamas of intercepting supply shipments, while critics argue that Israel’s restrictions and military actions are the main reasons for the situation.
Pro-Israel groups and some US lawmakers have supported Netanyahu, accusing The New York Times of bias and portraying Israel as the creator of artificial famine. Those in support of the newspaper argue that this is an attempt to intimidate journalists and prevent criticism of Israeli policies.
If Netanyahu does proceed with a lawsuit, it wouldn’t be the first time an Israeli leader has sued American media. In 1983, then-Defense Minister Ariel Sharon filed a lawsuit against Time magazine for their report on his involvement in the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacre. The jury found the report to be false and defamatory, but due to lack of “actual malice,” Time was not required to pay damages.