New York Times editorial written by Hamas-appointed mayor sparks outrage
Hamas-appointed mayor of Gaza City, Yahya Sarraj
The New York Times provoked an outraged response after publishing an op-ed by the Hamas-appointed mayor of Gaza City.
In his essay, Yahya Sarraj condemned Israel for its military response to Hamas’s Oct 7 attack, accusing it of “unrelenting destruction”.
According to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, at least 20,000 people have been killed by the Israel Defense Forces’ retaliatory offensive in the enclave.
“The Israelis have also pulverised something else: Gaza City’s cultural riches and municipal institutions,” said Mr Sarraj, who was reportedly appointed by Hamas in 2019 after a career in academia.
He added Israel had razed many of the city’s cultural features, including a library and the zoo, and destroyed “whatever economic prosperity” the wider territory had.
“The unrelenting destruction of Gaza… has broken my heart,” Mr Sarraj said.
Critics of the newspaper’s decision to publish the piece were swift to react.
“I wonder, would NYT also publish an op-ed from Al-Qaeda justifying 9-11? Of course not, but there is no red line to this paper’s Jew-hatred,” said Arsen Ostrovsky, an international human rights lawyer.
“Unbelievable. This is a Hamas-appointed mayor,” another critic said on social media.
“They slaughtered and raped their neighbours and have the nerve to represent themselves as victims?”
Global call for pressure
In his essay, which was published on Dec 24 under the title, “I Am Gaza City’s Mayor. Our Lives and Culture Are in Rubble”, Mr Sarraj called for “everyone” to pressure world leaders to stop what he described as “mindless destruction” in Gaza.
“Why can’t Palestinians be treated equally, like Israelis and all other peoples in the world?” he questioned.
“Why can’t we live in peace and have open borders and free trade? Palestinians deserve to be free and have self-determination.”
Opponents of the piece argued his plea was absurd, given the death and destruction wrought by Hamas during its raid on Israel.
“The Hamas-appointed mayor of Gaza City complains about the terrible destruction of the total war that his people started on Oct 7,” said Mark Humphrys, a self-described pro-Israel social media user.
“‘Why can’t we live in peace and have open borders and free trade?’ he bizarrely asks. It’s because your people raped, tortured and massacred your way across defenceless Israeli communities, in barbaric scenes from hell,” Mr Humphrys added.
Jeff Davis, another critic of the column, said: “No one should be surprised. The NY Times did not report on the genocide of Jews during the Second World War and now they are fixing the new Nazis a platform to spew their satanic hate and lies.”
The Telegraph has approached the New York Times for comment.
The incident does not mark the first time the newspaper has sparked controversy with content published in its op-ed pages.
In June 2020, it ran a piece by Republican senator Tom Cotton calling for troops to be used against rioters in the US.
Liberal readers were outraged. James Bennet, the then opinion editor, initially defended the printing of Senator Cotton’s article as a means of reflecting all sides of the debate before resigning just days later.
%n
Discover Telegraph Wine Cellar’s new wine club. Enjoy expertly chosen bottles at exclusive member prices. Plus, free delivery on every order.