Israel’s Naftali Bennett ridiculed over ‘failed’ Gaza ‘propaganda’ video
Naftali Bennett and the wrong picture
Nadda Osman reports in Middle East Eye:
Israeli far-right politician Naftali Bennett is being ridiculed online after sharing a video on Twitter that showed an image of a hospital in Pakistan as he claimed that Hamas uses one of Gaza’s main hospitals as its headquarters.
Bennett, a former minister of defence, posted the video on 20 May and tagged public figures Bella Hadid, Trevor Noah and John Oliver, who have been vocal about Israel’s recent bombardment of Gaza, which killed 253 Palestinians including 66 children in 11 days before a ceasefire was announced.
Bennett can be seen defending and justifying Israel’s attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip, which started on 10 May, saying that the video, made in response to people who have shown solidarity with Palestine, intends to explain why the attacks were conducted. “As a dad of four children, who spent the last week in a shelter, and as Israel’s former defence minister I’d like to explain why innocent people are sometimes caught in the crossfire in our just war against terrorism,” he said.
The video then shows an image of a hospital intended to be in Gaza, which social media users were quick to slam as fake news and failed propaganda, pointing out that the image was in fact of Shifa International Hospital in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad.
Former Israeli defence minister Naftali Bennett shared a video on Facebook purporting to show a photo of Al Shifa hospital in Gaza, which he accuses of ties to Hamas. “Ever hear of the Shifa hospital? It’s the largest medical complex in Gaza. It’s also where Hamas’ headquarter is located while they’re conducting terror actions against Israel,” Bennett said. However, the photo is actually a Google Maps screengrab of Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad, Pakistan. pic.twitter.com/7PR1JLtQiG — Chris Hutchinson (@ChrisHu34451470) May 29, 2021
Israel’s bombardment of Gaza destroyed a large number of buildings, including residential towers, the al-Rimal medical clinic and a number of roads and schools. Two doctors at Gaza’s al-Shifa Hospital were killed in the air strikes.