MSNBC news anchor Chris Hayes is receiving plaudits from human rights defenders and other progressive journalists after airing a segment on Wednesday night which offered a rare example of a major U.S. cable news outlet providing critical coverage of Israeli crimes against Palestinians.
While most network and cable news outlets have either ignored the story, or offered uncritical or equivocated coverage, of last Friday's mass shooting of Palestinian protesters along the Gaza border by Israeli troops, Hayes' segment included a harsh condemnation of the disproportionate, unjustifiable, and "unconscionable" use of force.
In addition to cozy and sycophantic relationship President Donald Trump has forged with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Hayes also condemned the deafening silence of American lawmakers over the behavior of the Israeli military—which the U.S. government supplies with billions of dollars in annual aid—and argued that such silence on human rights abuses and violence is a permission slip for allies like Israel to do "whatever they want." In turn, Israel is now running with that permission, said Hayes, "and that video—of teenagers being shot in an open field—that's what it looks like when they do."
What @chrislhayes did here on MSNBC is almost never seen on US corporate TV. He reported accurately on an Israeli massacre of Palestinians: https://t.co/uVQvHBKzeT
— jeremy scahill (@jeremyscahill) April 5, 2018
Props to @chrislhayes for showing footage on MSNBC of Israeli snipers picking off unarmed Palestinians in Gaza and describing the inhumanity of such military actions. Though his discussion of Palestinian refugee rights was sorely lacking https://t.co/XBubWq1gli
— Alex Kane (@alexbkane) April 5, 2018
Not shocking in a depraved political and media culture wherein acknowledging the humanity of Palestinians amounts to an act of courage. it's encouraging that @chrislhayes does so, and I hope others follow suit: https://t.co/COOUbfpRJg https://t.co/4Nv5gTrKxJ
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Thank you for providing the truth about this protest at the border of Gaza and the massacre by Israel. Silence is complicity and you were not silent!
— Catherine Alder (@HopeTass) April 5, 2018
Watch the segment:
WATCH: Journalist @chrislhayes on Israel's attack of Palestinian protesters in Gaza last week: "[Defense of Israel's actions] in no way justifies what Israeli soldiers appear to have done - which is: perch on a hill and pick off protesters with sniper fire." pic.twitter.com/O5lYSrBb8B
— The IMEU (@theIMEU) April 5, 2018
