By Marelinke van der Riet

Two weeks ago, a deeply disturbing shooting attack claimed the lives of a young Jewish couple, both staff members of the Israeli Embassy, as they were leaving an event at the Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. Eyewitnesses reported the gunman had entered the event and mingled with the crowd, followed the couple as they left and shot them dead, and then shouted “Free Palestine” as he was being arrested.

Then in Boulder, Colorado on Sunday, another horrifying antisemitic attack occurred. A group of pro-Israel activists – most elderly Jews who stage a weekly walk to raise awareness of the plight of the Israeli hostages in Gaza – were severely injured when a man threw Molotov cocktails at them. Witnesses reported that he, too, shouted, “Free Palestine!”

Well, here we are! The popular slogan at anti-Israel protests over the past 20 months of the Gaza conflict, together with calls to “Globalize the Intifada!”, have now crossed over into tragic antisemitic attacks against Jews in America. The vicious jihad against the Jewish nation and people has indeed gone global.

Media Narratives: Fuel for the Fire

What makes this moment especially alarming is how misinformation and sensational headlines have laid the groundwork for such violence. Both recent attacks came in the wake of inflammatory, unverified headlines regarding Israel’s military actions in Gaza.

Take, for example, the recent claims broadcast by major media outlets: “Israel starving 14,000 babies to death,” or “Israel kills 31 people at food distribution point.” These statements, based on deliberately falsified figures or reports from Hamas and its Gaza Health Ministry, were quickly challenged and debunked. Yet the damage was done. The initial lies, sure to charge emotions, made headlines and spread hatred of Jews like wildfire. The retractions? Barely an utterance.

This pattern endlessly repeats itself. Major media platforms continue to publish reports sourced from entities with proven records of inaccuracy – like the Gaza Health Ministry – without sufficient skepticism. The result is an overwhelming imbalance in coverage. Misleading narratives saturate social media feeds, shape public opinion, inflame tensions, and spur violent attacks before the true facts can catch up.

World leaders, perhaps influenced by the biased anti-Israel media coverage in their countries, join the chorus of criticism against Israel and demand the imposition of a Palestinian state – which would be a grotesque reward for Hamas terrorism.

A Crisis of Credibility

This twisting of the narrative against Israel has real-world consequences. People form opinions based on first impressions, especially when those impressions are paired with heartbreaking images or inciteful language. Retractions, corrections, and context rarely receive the same amplification.

In this digital age – when engagement trumps accuracy and algorithms push the most sensational content to the top – truth becomes a casualty. By the time a story is clarified or corrected, the hatred of Jews has already taken root.

So, one must ask: should Israel even continue trying to push back against this avalanche of vile falsehoods? In an era increasingly dominated by AI-generated content, deepfakes, and misinformation, even high-quality, verified evidence from the Israeli Defense Forces is often ignored or dismissed.

Videos released by the IDF showing Hamas using hospitals and schools for military purposes are routinely scrutinized or rejected – despite third-party verification. Meanwhile, Gaza-based content – no matter how questionable – is accepted without hesitation.

This selective distrust undermines peace efforts, perverts the pursuit of truth and justice, widens the gap between perception and reality, and produces violent responses.

The Moral Response

In moments of violence and injustice, it is natural to ask: how should we respond? We must return to what is true – and to what God requires of us.

“He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8). We are not only called to believe rightly but to live rightly – with justice, compassion and humility.

This kind of response requires endurance. “Let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart” (Galatians 6:9). The pursuit of truth is not a sprint – it is a long, faithful walk. In Israel’s case, the lies are swift and cruel, but the truth and justness of Israel’s cause will prevail in the end. So, we must stay the course, even when it feels like we are walking uphill against the tide of misinformation and fear.

Falsehoods may flare like wildfire, but they burn out. “The truthful lip shall be established forever, but a lying tongue is but for a moment” (Proverbs 12:19). Though truth may seem overshadowed in the moment, it is never extinguished.

Violence – whether in Gaza, Israel, or the streets of America – must never be justified. No ideology or slogan excuses the targeting of innocent people. Yet here we are: headlines numb us, and too often we react rather than reflect.

What Now?

Yes, the media holds extraordinary power. But so do we.

We can choose to pause before sharing that headline. We can look for context, ask for verification, and resist the temptation to rush to judgment. We can speak out against violence without losing our compassion, and we can demand accountability from the press – never abandoning our commitment to truth.

Because if we do not, we risk becoming part of the very cycle we mourn: a world where screaming headlines incite violence, and muted retractions never repair the damage.

Main photo: A “Free Palestine” protest. (Photo: Nikolas Gannon/Unsplash)