Gaza Time Warp
Sept. 2 Update Appended: Time Corrects
The Sept. 1 Time Magazinearticle “Gaza Could Become ‘Uninhabitable’ by 2020, U.N. Report Warns,” is chronologically challenged, claiming that extensive destruction in Gaza during this summer’s war, when Hamas launched thousands of rockets at Israel’s civilian population, including an untold number of projectiles from subsequently damaged and destroyed residential areas in Gaza, actually transpired following the war, a relatively quiet period. The article errs, claiming:
Since the most recent Israeli military operation in 2014, more than 20,000 Palestinian homes, 148 schools and 60 healthcare centers in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed, according to the U.N.
But the United Nations report in question details that the aforementioned damage took place during the 2014 Israeli military operation in Gaza against Hamas, not since the operation, as reported. In particular, the U.N. document states on page 9:
35. OQR compiled a partial list of damages incurred by Gaza during the 2014 operation, which have significant economic and social effects, and reported the following (OQR, 2014):
(a) 18,000 housing units destroyed or severely damaged and 44,300 units damaged
(b) 26 schools destroyed and 122 damaged
(c) 15 hospitals and 45 primary health centres damaged
In addition, it is noteworthy that an article about the difficult situation in Gaza which cites “Israeli military operations and a nearly decade-long blockade” fails to mention the word Hamas even once. Hamas, a designated terror organization which rules the Gaza Strip and has put vast economic and human resources as well as building materials into its terror infrastructure, is responsible for the launching of thousands upon thousands of rockets at Israel: thus, the reason for the military operations and blockade.
Sept. 2 Update: Time Corrects
Editors at Time.com have commendably corrected. The text now accurately states:
The most recent Israeli military operation in 2014 left more than 20,000 Palestinian homes, 148 schools and 60 healthcare centers in Gaza damaged or destroyed, according to the U.N.
In addition, the following correction is appended to the bottom of the article:
Finally, editors took the additional, praiseworthy step of prominently noting at the very top of the article that a correction was appended.
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