A man waves a Palestinian flag as pro-Hamas demonstrators protest next to the Greek parliament, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Athens, Greece, May 7, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis

Shortly after Israel started attacking Hamas’ last stronghold in Rafah on Monday, May 6, the terror group suddenly announced that it had “accepted” a proposed ceasefire deal from Arab mediators.

With few exceptions, media outlets rushed to echo Hamas’ claim in uncritical headlines that painted Israel as the aggressor and the terrorists as peace-seeking doves.

In fact, Hamas had accepted a “deal” that it proposed itself  —  a counteroffer that Israel had not even seen the terms of, and which was later described by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as “very far from Israel’s core demands.”

Hamas could not even confirm whether 33 Israeli hostages who would be freed in the first phase of the so-called deal are still alive, something Israel has insisted upon. And their proposal demanded an immediate and permanent end to the war, which Israel has never agreed to.

Here are a few examples of media headlines that got it wrong:

• The Washington Post (picking up AP) and Euronews painted Israel as a regional bully that attacks Rafah even though Hamas “accepts” a ceasefire deal:

• BBC World painted Hamas as peace-loving good guys who can be quoted as reliable sources:

• TIME Magazine’s headline included Israel’s position but based it on an official familiar with Israeli “thinking:”

• France 24 went as far as suggesting that Israel started its Rafah attack in response to Hamas’ acceptance of a ceasefire deal:

Journalistic Responsibility

Amid this faulty general coverage, it’s worth giving kudos to an example of journalistic responsibility.

In The New York Times, Peter Baker hit the nail on its head and Isabelle Kershner accurately described the gaps between Hamas and Israel on the ceasefire proposal:

While so many media are crediting Hamas with accepting a ceasefire and accusing Israel of rejecting one, kudos to @peterbakernyt of @nytimes for doing some actual journalism and not falling into Hamas’ propaganda trap.https://t.co/cypVUJMshu pic.twitter.com/I6IXfwTx6D

— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) May 7, 2024

Sadly, this is not the first time that news outlets have rushed to parrot the words of a proscribed terrorist organization, as they did in their haste to blame Israel for the Al-Ahli Hospital blast, which was later confirmed to be the result of a Palestinian Islamic Jihad rocket.

It is also well known that Hamas is pulling the media’s strings in Gaza, as am Islamic Jihad spokesperson recently admitted.

It’s time the media stopped falling for a terror organization’s propaganda tricks.

The author is a contributor to HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.