By Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent
NEW YORK/GAZA CITY/JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – Questions have been raised about footage of alleged mass starvation in Gaza after The New York Times admitted that an emaciated child displayed on its front page as evidence of famine was suffering from a grim medical condition unrelated to the conflict with Israel.
“An article on Friday about people in Gaza suffering from malnutrition and starvation after nearly two years of war with Israel lacked information about Mohammed Zakaria al-Mutawaq, a child suffering from severe malnutrition and whose photo was featured prominently in the article,” the newspaper wrote.
“After publication of the article, The Times learned from his doctor that Mohammed also had pre-existing health problems. Had The Times known the information before publication, it would have been included in the article and the picture caption,” it added.
The apology added to concerns among critics that mainstream media outlets often use images provided by self-declared “journalists” linked to Gaza-ruling Hamas — designated as a terrorist organization by Israel and several of its allies.
The Times’ ordeal began Friday when a grim image of a malnourished infant was splashed across its front page with the somber headline: “Young, Old and Sick Starve to Death in Gaza: ‘There Is Nothing.’”
The photo’s caption stated the boy was “born healthy,” and the accompanying article described a hunger crisis in Gaza reaching “new and astonishing levels of desperation,” focusing on Palestinians dying from starvation. Among them was Mohammed Zakaria al-Mutawaq, an 18-month-old whose father was reportedly “killed last October when he went out to seek food,” according to The Times.
Its later admission — that the boy was in fact suffering from a medical condition — was buried underneath the lengthy article, which had already circulated globally for more than four days, critics said.
MORE IMAGES
HonestReporting, a pro-Israel media watchdog, uncovered that another Gaza boy — reportedly Mohammed’s brother — can be seen in the background of other images of the child, appearing to be in significantly better condition.
“Time and again, they have run with unverified images and unchecked claims. No due diligence. No questions asked. Because these stories fit the narrative they want to tell – that Israel is waging a war against a helpless civilian population,” HonestReporting wrote.
“Muhammad has a medical condition. He is not simply a victim of starvation, and the image has been presented in a misleading and incomplete way.”
Adam Rubenstein, a former opinion editor at The New York Times, criticized the paper: “If you read carefully, this is an admission of a remarkable deception. They ran a story about malnutrition but didn’t include the context that the malnutrition is not caused by a lack of food, but by a pre-existing condition — a disease that affects the child’s ability to thrive,” he wrote on social media platform X.
“I.e., in effect, they buried the actual story of the child’s malnutrition to tell a different story of the malnutrition. Why? You can answer that,” Rubenstein continued. “And — it should be noted: If the original story was fit to print on the front page of the paper, so is the updated one with a clear editors’ note.”
Journalist David Collier, who flagged the image as misleading on Sunday, wrote that the “revelation raises serious issues of media integrity.”
HUNGER FACES
The article, which essentially presented Mohammed as one of the faces of the hunger crisis plaguing Gaza since Israel ended a two-month ceasefire in mid-March, featured distressing quotes from the boy’s mother, such as, “I look at him and I can’t help but cry.”
Hamas-linked authorities claim that many people — including children — are dying of starvation, though Israel says large quantities of aid have been seized or diverted by Hamas fighters.
Footage has emerged purportedly showing Hamas operatives shooting at civilians attempting to drive aid trucks through the streets.
Israel has also accused the United Nations of failing to distribute more than 900 truckloads of aid parked near the Kerem Shalom crossing in Gaza.
The number of Palestinians killed in Israel’s ongoing military campaign reportedly surpassed 60,000 this week, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry — though the figures do not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
Israel says nearly half of those killed are Hamas fighters. The war began after Hamas killed over 1,200 people and kidnapped around 251 others in a coordinated attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
It was described by Israeli and Western leaders as the worst atrocity against Jews since the Holocaust, also known as the Shoah.
Copyright 1999-2025 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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