New York Times criticized for op-ed by Hamas-appointed mayor condemning Israel

By Samantha Kamman, Christian Post Reporter Thursday, December 28, 2023

The New York Times has become the highest-profile media organization to leave Apple News, saying the tech giant's service was not helping achieve the newspaper's subscription and business goals. The daily's exit comes as news organizations around the world struggle with declining print readership and an online environment where ad revenue is dominated by Google and Facebook. | JOHANNES EISELE/AFP via Getty Images

The New York Times was criticized for publishing an op-ed by the Hamas-appointed mayor of Gaza City, which accused Israel of engaging in "unrelenting destruction," with only a brief mention of the terror group's Oct. 7 massacre.

On Christmas Eve, The New York Times published a guest essay by Yahya Sarraj titled "I am Gazy City's Mayor. Our Lives and Culture Are in Rubble." In the article, the mayor wrote that Israel has "pulverized" the city's "cultural riches and municipal institutions," stating that the "unrelenting destruction" had "broken [his] heart."

Sarraj is a former rector of the University College of Applied Sciences in Gaza, which was founded in 1998. He was appointed mayor of Gaza City in 2019 by Hamas, the terrorist group that has controlled Gaza since 2007 and carried out a surprise attack against Israel on Oct. 7, slaughtering 1,200 people, a majority of them civilians.

In his op-ed, Sarraj stated that Israel's retaliatory offensive has led to the deaths of more than 20,000 people, citing data from the Gaza Health Ministry, which Hamas runs. The Gaza death count does not distinguish between terrorists and civilians.

"I call on the world's municipalities — everyone — to pressure world leaders to stop this mindless destruction," Sarraj wrote.

"Why can't Palestinians be treated equally, like Israelis and all other peoples in the world? Why can't we live in peace and have open borders and free trade? Palestinians deserve to be free and have self-determination," the Gaza City mayor continued. "Gaza's emblem is the phoenix, which rises from the ashes. It insists on life."

The New York Times did not immediately respond to The Christian Post's request for comment.

Former New York Times writer Adam Rubenstein responded to the guest essay in an X post the following day, criticizing the op-ed for failing to disclose that Hamas runs the Gaza Health Ministry.

"It mentions a 'deadly attack' by Hamas but doesn't condemn it, or even state who was attacked (civilian communities) or what happened (pillaging, arson, rape, murder, taking of hostages back into Gaza)," Rubenstein noted about the essay's references to the Oct. 7 attack.

The writer condemned the op-ed for leaving out the context of Israel's ongoing campaign in Gaza, which is to eradicate the terror group and secure the release of the individuals Hamas took hostage.

"At the end of the essay, the mayor asks, credulously, 'Why can't we live in peace and have open borders?'" Rubenstein wrote. "With proper context, the answer would be too obvious to write that question. Open borders, really?"

Honest Reporting, a nonprofit that works to ensure truthful reporting about Israel, pushed back against The New York Times for publishing Sarraj's op-ed. A Tuesday post on its website points out how former New York Times opinion editor James Bennet lost his job after a backlash ensued following the outlet's decision to publish an op-ed by Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark. in June 2020.

"While some elected right-wing US politicians are evidently persona non grata on the opinion page, unelected members of Palestinian terrorist organizations don't cause quite the same level of disgust, if any, among the esteemed staff at The New York Times," Honest Reporting Editorial Director Simon Plosker wrote.

Plosker stressed that Hamas would not have appointed Sarraj mayor unless the terror group trusted him, adding that Hamas authorities likely approved his op-ed before submission.

Responding to the Gaza City mayor's calls for peace, open borders and free trade, Honest Reporting shared a clip of Hamas Official Ghazi Hamad promising that the group would carry out attacks like the one on Oct. 7 "time and again."

"The New York Times is perfectly within its rights to give a platform to ordinary Palestinians suffering as a result of Hamas' decision to launch a war against Israel," Plosker stated. "But giving a platform to a Hamas-appointed figure without giving its readership the full picture is one step too far."

Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, tweeted her opposition to the op-ed.

"Remember when New York Times staff threw a tantrum over a Republican senator's op-ed?" she asked. "We heard no complaints from NYT staff about publishing an op-ed by a Hamas-appointed mayor over Christmas. That tells you everything you need to know about the state of our media."

The Jewish human rights group, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, also objected to the op-ed.

"New York Times gives #Hamas mayor, #YahyaSarrajIt its formerly prestigious op-ed space on Christmas Eve to condemn #Israel," the organization posted on X. "@nytimes — it's Hamas that mass murdered, raped, kidnapped and is still holding hostages nearly two months later."

Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman