A lawsuit was filed Wednesday against global news agencies Reuters and The Associated Press by five families on behalf of their relatives who were victims of the Hamas terrorist attack on the Nova music festival in southern Israel on Oct. 7.
This from newsmax.com.
At least 44 killed by Hamas at the Nova music festival in southern Israel on October 7.
Ynetnews reported:
The lawsuit alleges the news agencies published reports and pictures from journalists who were on assignment with the terrorists that engaged in the violence.
The families have stated:
[S]everal ‘journalists’ not only entered Israel with Hamas on the day of the massacre but also participated in the atrocities.
During the attack, Hamas massacred more than 1,200 Israeli citizens and took another 250 hostage.
Israel has said:
[A]bout a quarter of the remaining 130 hostages are presumed to be dead.
The lawsuit filed in Jerusalem District Court stated:
Reuters and The Associated Press are two of the largest news agencies in the world and produce televised and written reports using local teams
They are liable for the direct and indirect damage and actions of their ‘journalists.’
Any excuse or justification that could be raised claiming the rules of journalism—such as the right of the public to know—cannot justify a situation whereby a reporter for one of the agencies would be present, participate and film the commission of a serious crime, such as the abduction of an elderly woman from her home.
The lawsuit also stated:
[A]ny claim suggesting the reporters did not know of the planned attack is false because they ‘reported’ on the first minutes of the massacre.
Further:
There is no doubt that the ‘journalists’ who were present at the massacre could have assisted the victims and notified Israeli authorities in advance so that the atrocities would have been prevented.
The news agencies who had contracted the services of the ‘journalists,’ and who are responsible directly for their actions, are liable for damages caused to the plaintiffs.
The Jerusalem Post reported:
The lawsuit follows a lawsuit against the AP filed in the Southern District of Florida on behalf of survivors, family members of victims, and those displaced by the attack.
The lawsuit contended that the AP ignored the connections the photographers had to terrorist organizations.
The AP claimed Thursday the Florida lawsuit was baseless and that it:
[H]ad no advance knowledge of the October 7 attacks, nor have we seen any evidence—including in the lawsuit—that the freelance journalists who contributed to our coverage did.
Final thoughts: I’m thinking Reuters and AP will drag this out for several years but eventually they will have new owners.
