Israeli TV retracts false claim on UNRWA ambulance

Israeli TV retracts false claim on UNRWA ambulance
Mon Jul 21, 2014 10:30:58

Israeli Channel Two has retracted claims made a day before that an ambulance belonging to the UN's Palestine refugee agency UNRWA was used to transport Palestinian fighters, the organization says.

UNRWA said in a statement on Sunday that the channel, which is the Israeli regime's highest-rating TV news network, had retracted the "false and damaging allegations" after being confronted with "incontrovertible evidence" that they were "baseless" by the organization.

"There are many false reports circulating about UNRWA right now. This is another regrettable example in that long catalog of sloppy journalism," said UNRWA Spokesman, Chris Gunness, in a statement.

"The constant repetition of baseless allegations about the UN allows false mythologies to take root. I encourage members of the public to treat them with the suspicion they deserve and I call on all journalists to check with us first before damaging the credibility of their organizations."

In the past, the Zionist military has used such claims that Palestinian fighters use ambulances to transport weapons in efforts to justify attacks on those sites, which are prohibited under international law protecting civilians.

"UNRWA is working under incredible pressure right now in Gaza providing assistance to tens of thousands of people displaced by the fighting. Even during this extraordinarily difficult situation, we do our utmost to maintain the highest standards of neutrality for our staff, our property and in our installations," Gunness concluded.

The Israeli news outlet has in the past published a similar retraction following claims that UNRWA had not maintained a neutral record.

UNRWA is the UN agency originally set up in 1949 to ensure for relief and development for the 750,000 Palestinian refugees expelled from what became the occupying Zionist entity in 1948.

Today, the agency provides health care, education, social services, and other forms of aid to nearly five million Palestinian refugees, including more than a million in the Gaza Strip.

NTJ/MB

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