Dear Friend of Israel, Friend of FLAME:

When Israel demolished the abandoned former Jerusalem headquarters of UNRWA, the disgraced United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian (so-called) Refugees, Western press reflexively condemned the Jewish state for a myriad of bogus transgressions.

Their accusations falsely claimed Israel violated international law, threatened the welfare of Palestinian “refugees,” and acted out of unwarranted political motivations. In fact, Israel has in no way violated international law, nor did its demolition of the UNRWA compound threaten the welfare of Palestinians, nor was it “politically” motivated.

Legacy media also dismissed or failed to mention the security reasons for Israel banning UNRWA and its staff from operating within the Jewish state way back in October 2024.

• UNRWA’s employment of Hamas members, including staff who directly participated in Hamas’s October 7, 2023 massacre and kidnapping of Israeli citizens. In fact, UNRWA boasts hundreds of staffers who are affiliates of Hamas or other terrorist organizations.
• The use of UNRWA facilities by terrorist groups like Hamas for storing weapons, building tunnels and launching attacks on Israel. Indeed, Israel has documented dozens of cases in which UNRWA sites have been used for terrorist purposes.
• UNRWA’s use of antisemitic educational materials in its schools that encourage children to slaughter Jews and seek martyrdom as the highest achievement one can aspire to.
• UNRWA’s perpetuation of refugee status for generations of descendants of actual (mostly deceased) Palestinian refugees.

Such slanted news coverage—incorporating both sins of omission and of outright lying—reinforce public perception that mainstream media is a cesspool of narrative bias and a discredited source of truth. Here are some of the more egregious examples of journalistic malpractice in covering the UNRWA demolition:

Israel had every legal right to demolish UNRWA’s former headquarters. Yet, many media outlets claimed the demolition was illegal. CNN framed the demolition as “defiance of international law,” while the New York Times quoted UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini’s lie that Israel’s action represented “a new level of open & deliberate defiance of international law.”

It’s admittedly true that the 1946 Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations requires all UN member states, including Israel, to respect the inviolability of UN premises and protect them from interference, such as demolition or seizure. However, UNRWA ceased operations at its Jerusalem headquarters early last year, with no remaining UN personnel or activities, thus stripping it of immunity under international law.

Loss of a former office poses no threat to Palestinians’ welfare. Nonetheless, legacy media overstated services provided by UNRWA to the Palestinians, implying that the demolition of the UNRWA compound in Jerusalem would compromise valuable aid. For instance, NPR stressed that UNRWA “has for years maintained infrastructure in refugee camps, run schools and provided healthcare.” But of course, since the compound was no longer being used by UNRWA, it was providing NO services to the Palestinians.

Demolition of UNRWA headquarters wasn’t “politically” motivated. Rather, UNRWA’s permission to operate was revoked by an overwhelming majority of the Israeli Knesset (parliament) last year, which banned all UNRWA activities on Israeli territory for four irrefutable reasons:

1) UNRWA employs Hamas terrorists. In fact, at least 12 named UNRWA workers directly participated in the October 7^th massacre—the worst mass slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust. Reports indicate that at least two UNRWA employees were involved in kidnapping Israelis during the massacre. One Israeli hostage released by Hamas in the November 2023 ceasefire told Israeli media he was held, starved and denied medical treatment by an UNRWA teacher.

Yet legacy media parrot UNRWA claims that Israel has never provided sufficient evidence of Hamas’s infiltration of the UN organization. For example, a report in the Times reads, “UNRWA’s leaders say Israel has never provided evidence to back up its claim that there had been widespread infiltration by Hamas or other groups.” Seriously!? Israeli has presented names of scores of UNRWA’s Gaza employees tied to Hamas and intelligence estimates of up to 12% of all UNRWA employees in Gaza are tied to terror groups. The proof is there, but legacy media simply pretend it doesn’t exist.

2) Hamas used UNRWA facilities for their terrorist activities. Since October 7, 2023, Israel has uncovered at least 30 UNRWA facilities containing terrorist infrastructure, including tunnel networks, command and control centers, and weapons and explosives. Yet mainstream media make UNRWA out to be solely a humanitarian organization. Indeed, the BBC’s article on demolition of UNRWA’s headquarters described UNRWA simply as “the organization that provides aid, education and healthcare to Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza.” Such blatant omissions amount to lying.

3) UNRWA schools indoctrinate Palestinian children to hate and murder Jews. The organization uses textbooks issued by the Palestinian Authority that numerous studies have proved are inundated with antisemitism. The latest study of Palestinian textbooks conducted by IMPACT-se (Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance in School Education), released last November, found that despite promises of reform made to Western donors, the Palestinian curriculum still contains virulent antisemitism, as well as glorification of jihad, martyrdom, and terrorism. You’ll find no mention of such antisemitic indoctrination in articles about the demolition.

4) UNRWA perpetuates the Palestinian refugee crisis. The UN organization maintains a bizarre definition of refugee applicable only to Palestinians, in which descendants of Arab refugees who fled Israel in the 1948 war are also considered refugees. This definition obstructs peace by emphasizing a mythical “right of return” of five million artificial refugees that would demographically threaten Israel’s Jewish majority, and therefore, the Jewish state’s very existence.

Legacy media’s anti-Israel narrative is fraught with lies, half-truths and omissions. Please make the point when speaking with family, friends, colleagues—or in letters to the editor—that biased news coverage only deepens public distrust, exposing mainstream media as purveyors of biased narratives instead of reliable facts.

If you agree we need to spread this truth, please use your email browser to forward this Hotline issue to fellow lovers of Israel—and encourage them to join us by subscribing to the Hotline at no charge.

Best regards,
James Sinkinson, President
Facts and Logic About the Middle East (FLAME)

P.S.      Surely you’ve recently read of some celebrity, politician, radical student, foreign head of state or media pundit slander Israel with the “Gaza genocide” lie. Many who spread this lie are ignorant, but most are anti-Israel haters. They care nothing for the truth. The tragedy is, when they utter the Gaza genocide falsehood, too few knowledgeable people—and virtually no media—stand up to refute it. Indeed, when you share the simple facts, the genocide lie crumbles. Upon learning that Israel conducts its war against Hamas terrorists with the highest ethical standards—and that nothing Israel does in Gaza fits the definition of genocide—fair-minded people quickly see through the lie. I hope you’ll agree that we supporters of the Israel-U.S. relationship need to speak out. FLAME’s new hasbarah—explanatory message—“Facts Shatter Gaza Genocide Lies”—describes what genocide is and is not and proves factually that Israel’s tactics in the war are ethical and righteous. It also reveals demographic data showing that the Palestinian population in Gaza is actually increasing. Finally, it notes that those who spread the Gaza genocide lie fit the classic definition of antisemites. Please review this convincing, fact-based editorial, which FLAME is about to publish to millions—in leading social media, as well as in the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Chicago Tribune, Tampa Bay Times, Denver Post and Los Angeles Times. This piece will also be sent to all members of Congress, the President and Vice President. If you agree that this kind of public relations effort on Israel’s behalf is critical, I urge you to support us with a donation.