Sophie Elsworth | The Australian | June 4, 2023
The ABC has reviewed and amended two articles relating to Israel, including one that described a convicted terrorist who threw a grenade at civilians as an “ex-Palestinian freedom fighter”.
The ABC also published a separate story on May 27 under the headline: “Three Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank, ministry says.”
That seven-paragraph article was amended last week after concerns were raised by the Australian Jewish Association. An “editor’s note” is now attached to the bottom of the story that reads: “The three dead Palestinians were later identified as members of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade militant group.”
The ABC told the AJA in correspondence seen by The Australian that the second story was reviewed by the ABC ombudsman’s office, which found: “The program has explained the story was correct at the time that it was published but it should have been updated when extra details came in.”
The article published on May 22 included the term “freedom fighter” and interviewed two fathers from different sides of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
It said the pair were “united by unbearable pain”.
The article was reviewed and the ABC said in an email to AJA that it was “fair and balanced however the term ‘freedom fighter’ has been removed from the article”.
AJA president David Adler said the public broadcaster “has a long and disgraceful history of extreme anti-Israel bias”.
“The recent complaints by the AJA concern a particularly disturbing pattern in the ABC’s reporting, namely to hide the jihadist terrorism when referring to certain Arab Palestinians involved in violence,” he said.
Mr Adler said the articles conveyed “a misleading impression to the Australian public and creates a negative perspective of Israel”. “When it comes to conflicts, it is also common for the ABC to focus on Israel’s response, such as attacking targets in Gaza, without mentioning that this was a response to terrorist rocket fire.”