Journalist Mehdi Hasan's 'Debunked' series exposes seven lies by Israel regarding Gaza
Renowned journalist Mehdi Hasan has launched a groundbreaking video series titled 'Debunked' on Zeteo, which began with a video dissecting what he asserts are seven misleading narratives propagated by Israel concerning Gaza.
Hasan, taking to his social media platform, expressed the necessity of exposing these "dangerous lies" that have, according to him, been overlooked by mainstream media.
Hasan wrote, “we must call out those dangerous lies even if others in our media won’t”. He said his new video series is devoted to “debunking the top seven lies about Gaza & October 7th”.
1. Alleged Ceasefire Breach:
Hasan begins by challenging the assertion that Hamas broke an existing ceasefire on October 7th, a claim repeatedly made by Israel. Contradicting Israeli leaders, Hasan cites news articles from the AP news agency that reported Israeli airstrikes in Gaza two weeks before the October 7th attack, suggesting ongoing hostilities.
The article was published two weeks before the October 7th attack, said Hasan. Another news article said Gaza Strip protesters received bullet wounds to ankles. Another article read, “even before Hamas’ attack on October 7, Israeli forces had already killed 234 Palestinians in the West Bank this year (2023), while settlers were responsible for nine more killings”. Hasan mocked that even if there was a ceasefire before the October 7th attack, “nobody told Israeli military” about it.
2. Hostage Priority:
Another lie, as per Hasan, involves the prioritization of freeing hostages. While U.S. President Joe Biden emphasized it as the "highest priority," Israel's finance minister reportedly stated that destroying Hamas took precedence over hostage retrieval. Hasan alleges that Israeli airstrikes resulted in the deaths of Israeli hostages, challenging the narrative of a successful rescue operation.
Hasan said, “wittingly or unwittingly, Israeli military has killed more Israeli hostages than its soldiers have rescued”. He cited the report of an Israeli journalist’s tweet which shared an Israeli website. The website said, 10 Israeli hostages were killed by Israeli air strikes in Gaza. It said the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) had intel on some of the hostages were residing in buildings that were targeted by them. According to Hasan, IDF “killed their own citizens and then lied and said they died in Hamas captivity”.
3. The 40 Beheaded Babies Claim:
Addressing what Hasan terms the most emotive and offensive lie, he tackles the widely circulated claim of 40 beheaded babies during Hamas' October 7th attack. Hasan dismisses this as a cynical and repulsive fabrication, citing evidence that disproves the existence of such an atrocity.
Hasan called the story of 40 beheaded babies as a “cynical, reckless and repulsive lie” that was used to justify the killing of hundreds of Palestinian babies.
4. IDF Claim on Al Shifa Hospital:
Israel's assertion that Hamas had a headquarters under the Al Shifa hospital is the fourth lie debunked by Hasan. He argues that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) failed to provide concrete evidence and relied on vague details, such as a pair of cots in an unused room, to support their claim.
Washington Post also reported about IDF failing to produce immediate evidence of Hamas using the hospital for military use and as a “command and control centre”.
5. Reliability of Gaza Health Ministry's Numbers:
Hasan touches upon the Israeli government's reluctance to trust casualty figures provided by the Gaza Health Ministry. He emphasizes the contradictory stance, noting that the IDF accepts the Health Ministry's figures as reliable. He also highlighted The Lancet's support, stating there is no inflated mortality reporting from Gaza.
6. Denial of Hunger in Gaza:
Challenging the Israeli defense official's claim that there is no hunger in Gaza, Hasan refers to the World Food Programme's statement that four out of the world's five hungriest people are in Gaza. He disputed the narrative by pointing out the dire humanitarian situation leading to deaths, including among infants, due to starvation.
7. Gazans Electing Hamas:
The final lie addressed by Hasan is the assertion that Gazans getting killed today chose Hamas through elections. He rebuts this claim as a 'Bin Laden-ist logic,' stating it implies a right to kill based on political choices. Hasan argued that many Gazans, especially the younger population, did not participate in the last election nearly two decades ago.
Hasan said the claim of Gazans elected Hamas is “just a lie”. To pove his point, he pointed out that half of the Gaza’s population are under 18, and most of them weren’t even born during the time when the last election in Gaza took place, which is nearly two decades ago. He also pointed that the in the 2006 legislative election, Hamas did not win the majority of the vote cast.
"We must call out those dangerous lies even if others in our media won't"
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) March 5, 2024
My new video series 'Debunked!' just launched for @zeteo_news. The first episode is devoted to debunking the top seven lies about Gaza & October 7th.
(Oh & do pls subscribe here: https://t.co/Nj0IOnvnyk) pic.twitter.com/D7PiCJWTkk
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
