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US Quaker group says NYT rejected ad that called Israel’s war in Gaza a ‘genocide’
The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) accused The New York Times of “an outrageous attempt to sidestep the truth” after the newspaper refused to run an advertisement that described Israel’s actions in Gaza as a “genocide”.
The proposed advertisement read:
“Tell Congress to stop arming Israel’s genocide in Gaza now! As a Quaker organization, we work for peace. Join us. Tell the President and Congress to stop the killing and starvation in Gaza.”
The AFSC, a peace and social justice Quaker group, said the newspaper justified its decision by saying there are “differing views on the situation” in Gaza and that it “must ensure that all advertising content complies with these widely applied definitions”.
The group said it has now cancelled the planned advertising with the newspaper.
White House insists Israel is not committing genocide in Gaza
Reporters asked White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby why the US has determined a genocide is unfolding in Sudan, while refusing to do the same with Gaza.
Kirby said that although the death toll in Gaza is “unacceptably high” and there have been “too many civilian casualties”, the Biden administration does not believe Israel is committing genocide in the Palestinian territory.
“The [Israeli military] isn’t waking up every day and putting their boots on the floor, saying, ‘Hey, we’re going to go kill some innocent people because they happen to be Palestinian,’” Kirby said during the press briefing on Wednesday.
“We have been nothing but direct with our Israeli counterparts about our concerns on [the death toll] and about trying to get them … to be more discriminate about the civilian toll in Gaza,” he added.
US has power to halt all military aid to Israel: Doctors Against Genocide
A global coalition of healthcare workers called Doctors Against Genocide has called for the United States to end military aid to Israel after colleagues were detained last month by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip.
The group mobilised more than 50 medical professionals on Capitol Hill to advocate for the release of Hussam Abu Safia, director of the destroyed Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, who was detained by Israeli troops along with others during a December 27 raid on the health facility.
Steve Berman, a member of Doctors Against Genocide who is “very concerned” about the crisis in Gaza, the forced detentions of doctors and the deliberate murder of innocent civilians.
“This should never have happened, and if you can, please stop. Not if you can. I know you can. But please stop the support of the Israeli government because they’re killing innocent people,” Berman, a retired cardiologist, told Anadolu Agency.
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