Complaint
A reader of this article complained that it said Yahya Sinwar had been arrested at the age of 19 by the Israeli authorities for “Islamic activities” – a term which might encompass the harmless observance of Islamic practices, whereas the record suggested his arrest was for membership of, or participation in, proscribed organisations. The ECU considered the complaint in the light of the ѿý’s editorial standards of accuracy.
Outcome
The ECU agreed the phrase “Islamic activities” was inaccurate, and noted that the article had been corrected in that respect, as had a number of other articles on related topics which used the same phrase. In those cases, however, a note acknowledging and explaining the correction had been added, in accordance with the ѿý’s guidelines on correcting mistakes. Through oversight, no such note had been added to the article originally complained of, so the breach of standards in relation to accuracy had not been appropriately rectified by the time the complaint reached the ECU.
Upheld
Further action
The finding was reported to the management of ѿý News and discussed with the editorial team concerned, and an appropriate note was added to the article.