As horrifying images and accounts of maimed children and grieving mothers circulate online, media outlets in the U.S. spent the day trying to make sense of one of the most brutal single-day bombings of Israel’s war on Palestinians in Gaza.
Some explained Israel’s deadly airstrikes as a natural result of “fruitless negotiations” with Hamas, or as a bargaining tactic to “increase pressure on Hamas.” Other outlets simply repeated, without question or skepticism, Israeli and U.S. government claims that blame Hamas for the strikes
The first phase of the ceasefire, which took effect on January 19, included an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners. But in that span, Israel continued military operations in Gaza, killing more than 150 Palestinians, including in a bombing that took the lives of journalists and aid workers. And at the start of the second phase on March 2, Israel continued to violate the agreement, refusing to withdraw its soldiers from the Philadelphi Corridor, a crucial crossing point between Gaza and Egypt.
Instead, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu went back on the deal and presented Hamas with an alternate plan: the continued military occupation of the territory, the continued release of hostages, and setting aside talks toward a permanent ceasefire.