'Biased' Israel-Gaza war coverage: 3 Tunisian journos resign from Western media outlets

In a statement against the portrayal of Israel's war on Gaza by Western media outlets, three Tunisian journalists officially resigned from their positions.

They expressed their dismay with the coverage of the conflict, highlighting what they perceived as biased reporting and the failure to adequately represent the Palestinian perspective, the New Arab reports.

One of the journalists, Achouak Hannachi, who had been part of the French channel Cnews, known for its conservative stance and affiliation with the Canal+ media group, took to Facebook on October 18 to announce her resignation.

"Since October 7, my Tunisian colleague and friend Amani Oueslati and I have chosen to resign from Canal+," she wrote.

She emphasised their unwavering commitment to their profession, education, and the Palestinian cause, which they were not willing to compromise.

Amani Oueslati had been associated with Canal+, while Achouak Hannachi worked for Cnews, the New Arab report added.

These media outlets, along with many other Western news organisations, faced criticism for their perceived pro-Israel bias during the conflict, which erupted on 7 October.

Some reports from these outlets were seen as supporting the Israeli military's actions in Gaza, a stance that numerous individuals and groups have condemned as contributing to what they describe as "crimes against humanity" and "genocide."

The history of Cnews includes controversies related to biased content, and in 2021, the French Superior Audiovisual Council (CSA) sanctioned the channel for broadcasting hate speech targeting minor migrants.

The resignations by the two Tunisian journalists followed the announcement of Bassem Bounneni, the BBC correspondent for North Africa, who publicly disclosed his resignation from the British broadcasting group soon after the war in Gaza broke out.

Bounneni, who had covered Middle East and North African affairs for 15 years, explained that his decision was a matter of professional conscience.

In his statement on the X platform, he wrote, "This morning, I submitted my resignation from the British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC for the sake of my professional conscience."

On 13 October, BBC Reporter Noah Abrahams resigned from his job over the corporation's decision not to describe Hamas militants as "terrorists" in its coverage of the recent attacks in Israel.

In an interview with Peter Cardwell on TalkTV, Mr Abrahams said: "As with everyone in the Jewish community, I am not amazing. British Jews are terrified, as am I, and I have just made a really monumental career decision and life decision."

"I have morals and I stick by them. I think the words justified and unjustified have been thrown around a lot since the weekend and I think the BBC's refusal to use the correct terminology is unjustified."

The BBC has faced a barrage of complaints about its coverage of the Gaza war.

One particular discussion, aired by the BBC a day before the bombing of the Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, questioned whether Hamas tunnels existed beneath hospitals and schools in the Gaza Strip.

The discussion, based on speculation without concrete proof, was seen by many as legitimizing an alleged Israeli attack on the hospital that resulted in the tragic deaths of at least 470 people.

Israel denied responsibility for the hospital attack, placing blame on Palestinian armed groups.

Meanwhile, Tunisian social media platform expert Ahmed Qobaa announced his resignation Wednesday from membership in the Middle East and Africa Leaders Council of Meta, a group affiliated with Meta, which aims to support young entrepreneurs.

In a post on Facebook, Qobaa said his resignation came after Meta deleted more than 795,000 posts related to the unfolding war in Gaza.