Released British-Israeli hostage Emily Damari arrives at Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, Israel, after being held in Gaza since the deadly Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas, in this image obtained by Reuters on Jan. 19, 2025. Photo: Maayan Toaf/GPO/Handout via REUTERS

The release of three hostages — Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher, and Emily Damari — by Hamas in exchange for 90 Palestinian prisoners dominated international headlines on Sunday.

Despite other significant events, including the pending inauguration of President Donald Trump for his second term and the (brief and anticlimactic) shutdown of TikTok in the United States, the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas unsurprisingly remained at the forefront of global media coverage.

 

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While much of the reporting rightly focused on the emotional reunions between the hostages and their families after 15 months of captivity, several high-profile outlets glossed over what the Palestinian prisoner release actually entails: the release of hundreds of criminals, many convicted of violent crimes — including murder — and members of proscribed terrorist organizations.

Rather than confronting this inconvenient truth, their coverage instead leaned into framing the event as a cause for celebration.

Sky News, for example, quoted Islamic Jihad terrorist Firas Hassan lamenting the difficulties of life in prison after he was, according to them, repeatedly jailed for mere “opposition to the occupation.”

Sky further reassured readers that Hassan was only a member of the group’s “political wing.”

Is @SkyNews clueless or complicit? Do they seriously want readers to believe this Islamic Jihad terrorist was jailed for simply ‘opposing the occupation’? What are the chances his opposition took the form of planning terror attacks on Israeli civilians? pic.twitter.com/ARxETC3twD

— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) January 19, 2025

No country in the world, however, makes a distinction between Islamic Jihad’s so-called “political wing” and its military arm.

Notably, a previous BBC article identified Hassan as “‘active’” in the terrorist organization — responsible for some of the deadliest attacks on Israeli civilian.

Meanwhile, Reuters chose to publish an “explainer” profiling the “prominent” Palestinian prisoners set to be released — a stark reminder that in journalism, words matter.

Referring to convicted, unrepentant murderers as “prominent” is not just a choice but one with consequences. Adjectives like “notorious,” “deadliest,” or “unrepentant” would certainly be more fitting for those who slaughtered innocent men, women, and children.

Instead, Reuters bestowed a veneer of celebrity on these individuals, turning what should have been an informative piece into an exercise in whitewashing terror.

‘Prominent’? Seriously, @Reuters?! How about ‘notorious,’ ‘dangerous,’ or just plain ‘evil’? These aren’t celebrities—they’re terrorists. Some of the most unrepentant, brutal murderers, and this is the word you chose? pic.twitter.com/VE8whv9L3R

— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) January 19, 2025

Similarly, The New York Times’ so-called explainer fell short of providing any meaningful context when it vaguely informed readers that some Palestinians listed in the deal were “serving life sentences,” without elaborating on the crimes behind those sentences.

For example, Mahmud Abu Varda is serving 48 life sentences for masterminding multiple terror attacks, including a 1996 bus bombing in Jerusalem that killed 45 people.

Another prisoner set for release is Zakaria Zubeidi, a notorious Fatah terrorist and former Jenin commander of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades. Zubeidi, arrested in 2019 for his involvement in shootings near Beit El in the West Bank. He played a role in numerous attacks, including a bombing that killed six people at a Likud party branch in Beit Shean during the Second Intifada.

Yet, these critical details were conspicuously absent.

Trust @nytimes to omit WHY these Palestinian prisoners are serving life sentences. Among them are terrorists behind some of the deadliest attacks in Israeli history. A so-called ‘explainer’ that whitewashes Palestinian terrorism. Again. pic.twitter.com/7vJelEhYtN

— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) January 19, 2025

Perhaps the most brazenly tone-deaf coverage came from Sky News, which decided to paint a chilling scene as a “heartwarming” moment.

Posting a video of what it described as “celebrations” in Gaza following news of the ceasefire, Sky shared a clip of a large crowd chanting “Khaybar Khaybar ya Yahud” — a well-known and explicit threat invoking the slaughter of Jews.

Heartwarming indeed, Sky.

They were chanting ‘Khaybar Khaybar ya Yahud’—an explicit threat to slaughter Jews. But for @SkyNews, it was just Palestinians ‘celebrating’ the ceasefire. With reporting like this, how can anyone trust the media? pic.twitter.com/9jjTDwsT1Y

— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) January 19, 2025

Fox News misreported the prisoner numbers, while the UK’s Times of London inexplicably questioned whether Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed –held hostage by Hamas since long before the October 7, 2023, attacks — were truly “hostages,” placing the term in inverted commas.

What else does The Times imagine two men, held against their will for more than a decade, could possibly be?

What fresh hell is this, @thetimes? They are not ‘hostages’ in quotation marks—they ARE hostages. Kidnapped, held captive, and dehumanized by Hamas. Stop sanitizing terrorism. pic.twitter.com/cW51DFbwns

— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) January 19, 2025

The reunions between the hostages and their families should have been moments of pure celebration. Instead, sections of the media chose to compare these two events, presenting both as causes for celebration.

This kind of reporting does not serve the Palestinian cause. Lionizing Palestinian terrorists or excusing their actions only entrenches violence.

For any chance at lasting peace, Palestinian society must reject violence and terrorism — not celebrate those who commit it. Yet, time and again, an infantilizing press gives this death-cult behavior a pass, portraying it as just another side of the story.

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.