Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told foreign press on Sunday that he is “looking right now into the possibility of a governmental suit against The New York Times,” repeating something he told Fox News recently.
After the Times ran photos of three people, who it said were starving in Gaza, the three were found to be “fake,” Netanyahu told reporters. “This is outrageous,” he said. “Of course, the correction was postage-size. I don’t know where it was buried.”
The Israeli premier told foreign reporters that Osama Al-Rakab, who has a genetic disease “that damages the lungs and digestive system,” which “makes it hard to absorb nutrients and gain weight,” is getting treatment in Italy, “because Israel got him out.”
“Israel facilitated Osama’s travel to Italy, where he got the medical aid that transformed his position,” Netanyahu said.
Abdul Qader al-Fayoumi also suffers from the genetic, neurological disorder spinal muscular atrophy, a “degenerative condition that causes muscle wasting weakness and severe weight loss, unrelated to nutrition,” Netanyahu told the reporters. “This was the real cause of his frail appearance, not starvation. In fact, he was treated in Israel in 2018,” though “it’s a congenital disease and it defies most treatment.”
The Times “cover photo” of Mohammed Zakaria Ayoub and his mother showed a boy “suffering from a genetic illness which you’re familiar with,” Netanyahu said. “It’s called cerebral palsy. His mother is well-fed, and his brother is healthy.”
Earlier, Netanyahu told Bill Hemmer, of Fox News, that he was “looking at whether a country can sue The New York Times.”
“It’s clear defamation,” Netanyahu told Fox News.
