On March 19, HonestReporting received an email from an investigative journalist on behalf of Forbidden Stories, a nonprofit journalism consortium. Was this a genuine request for input on a story examining the Gazan journalists who infiltrated Israel on October 7, 2023? Or was it a thinly veiled attempt to undermine not just HonestReporting’s exposés but our entire organization?
From what we’ve seen, this so-called investigation looks a lot more like a hit piece. So we’ve decided to show you exactly what Forbidden Stories is doing behind the scenes—before they publish.
🚨 Is HonestReporting set to be the target of a hit piece?@FbdnStories wants our comments for publication “if appropriate” on a story clearly looking to trash our exposes of Gazan journalists who infiltrated Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
So here’s what’s appropriate.🧵 pic.twitter.com/4YHFptIYRe
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) March 23, 2025
French journalist Frédéric Métézeau emailed us:
On March 13th 2025 2.33PM Paris time, we contacted you on behalf of a consortium of journalists coordinated by Forbidden Stories, including Paper Trail Media, Le Monde, Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ), +972 Magazine, RFI, Bellingcat, France 24, Die Zeit. We kindly remind you that we’re planning to publish an investigation on a series of claims made and published by Honest Reporting regarding journalists in Gaza and abroad.”
That was news to us—because no such message appeared in our inboxes on March 13. Fortunately, Mr. Métézeau also informed us that the original deadline for comment was March 18, but “in the interest of transparency,” it was being extended to Sunday, March 23.
Given the tight deadline, it’s hard to believe an initial message was ever sent.
Before giving us a long list of leading questions, Métézeau continued:
Any substantive response we receive will be fairly reflected in our article if appropriate. If we don’t hear from you, we’ll proceed on the basis that you don’t dispute any of our information and also don’t wish to comment. However, we hope that you will take the opportunity to engage with us and improve our reporting.”
“If appropriate”? Who decides what’s appropriate? And why the assumption that silence equates to agreement? This kind of loaded framing doesn’t exactly inspire confidence or encourage open dialogue.
It quickly became clear that the questions weren’t part of an open-ended investigation. They were shaped to fit a predetermined narrative.
Much of the email focused on Gazan photojournalist Yasser Qudih, who infiltrated Israeli territory on October 7 and was previously honored by Hamas for his work with its Government Media Office.
Falsely Implicating HonestReporting in Alleged Attacks on Journalists
The questions hinted at a broader insinuation: that HonestReporting might somehow bear responsibility for Israeli airstrikes on Qudih’s home.
Let’s be clear: there could be any number of reasons for that strike—ranging from simple bad luck to either Qudih or someone close to him tying him to a terrorist organization—but one thing is certain: Israel does not target journalists for doing their jobs. Some of those who have been killed while wearing press vests were simply caught in the line of fire along with other Palestinians who have been victims of Hamas operating from within civilian infrastructure. Others, however, were not merely reporting—they were affiliated with Hamas or other terror organizations.
So do we believe the strike on Qudih’s home had anything to do with our reporting? Absolutely not. But it’s hard not to suspect that Forbidden Stories is trying to pin some of the blame on us:
We are not responsible for the statements of Israeli politicians—nor do we control them. Our reports, both before and after October 7, have made one thing very clear: journalists with close ties to terrorist organizations should not be trusted to report objectively on Gaza, and certainly should not be hired by mainstream Western outlets. Those who wear press vests while participating in terror operations are not journalists. They are propagandists and accomplices.
What is Forbidden Stories Investigating?
One question asked us to “clarify” what we meant by “infiltrated.” Had Forbidden Stories read our reporting, it would have been obvious: we were referring to Gazan journalists who illegally entered Israeli territory alongside Hamas terrorists on the morning of October 7.
Another question asked what would have been “a good time” for journalists to arrive on the scene. Journalists aim to be first at the scene—but we rightly questioned how some Gazan journalists were already there as the attack was unfolding.
Would Israeli journalists have been allowed to roam freely in Gaza during such an attack? Of course not. They would have been murdered or kidnapped like every other Israeli that day. The fact that Gazan journalists operated freely while filming atrocities strongly suggests complicity. This is supported by reporting from Israel’s Channel 12 news magazine Uvda, which revealed how Hamas used these “journalists” to document and spread footage of their massacre.
Journalists Honored by Hamas? Not a Problem
As we noted, Qudih was publicly honored by Hamas. That Forbidden Stories sees no problem with this raises serious concerns about its own journalistic standards. A quick glance at our full article —not just the tweet—would have made the issue clear.
Protecting Media from Scrutiny
It seems that Forbidden Stories is more interested in shielding journalists from accountability than in genuine investigative reporting.
According to them, our urging readers to email Reuters “might legally constitute harassment.” Journalists working hand-in-hand with terrorists are fine. But exposing them? That’s where Forbidden Stories draws the line.
Forbidden Stories then asks about our relationship with HonestReporting Canada and our opinion of their methods. It doesn’t take an investigative journalist to find that HonestReporting and its Canadian namesake are two completely unconnected organizations, editorially and financially, something that both organizations are transparent about.
What is Anti-Israel Media Bias and is HonestReporting “Disseminating Fake News?”
We aren’t going to spend time defining “anti-Israel bias” for Forbidden Stories. It seems likely that they are incapable of recognizing it even as HonestReporting and others publicly draw attention to the issue daily.
The suggestion that we might be “disseminating fake news” is outright absurd. In the example of an alleged famine in Gaza, we have pointed out on multiple occasions how the media have failed to retract dramatic claims of famine even after the data has been proven wrong.
Who Are Forbidden Stories?
According to its mission statement:
All over the world, journalists are imprisoned, abducted and murdered, depriving millions of people of information of public interest. This is what Forbidden Stories strives to prevent.
Our nonprofit organization, unique in the world, protects the work of threatened journalists and pursues the investigations of reporters who have been silenced.
It also adds:
We want to send out a clear message: killing a reporter will always be counter-productive. Why kill a journalist when dozens of others are ready to pursue their work? What some want to hide will be amplified.
Ultimately, the Gaza story has not been silenced even if journalists have died as a result of the war. Given its mission statement and the email we received, it becomes obvious that this is not investigative journalism. It’s agenda-driven and that agenda seeks to find responsibility for the deaths of Gazan journalists.
We refuse to cooperate with an investigation clearly designed to misrepresent and vilify us. Based on what we’ve seen, any comment we make risks being taken out of context.
We don’t yet know what Forbidden Stories will publish. But we’re certain it won’t serve the cause of real journalism.
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