An investigation by Declassified UK reveals that Israel’s former top military officer, General Aviv Kohavi, held private meetings with major British news editors.
Israel’s former top military officer, General Aviv Kohavi, held private meetings with major British news editors amidst the Gaza bombing, sparking concerns over media impartiality, an investigation by Declassified UK revealed on Thursday.
According to the report, Kohavi met with high-ranking figures such as Katherine Viner of the Guardian, Richard Burgess from the BBC, and Roula Khalaf of the Financial Times, one month after the Israeli bombing of Gaza began.
“Further meetings were due to be held with Sky News chairman David Rhodes at the Israeli embassy, and then shadow foreign secretary David Lammy, between 7 and 9 November 2023, according to Kohavi’s itinerary,” it added.
The information about the visits reportedly “comes in documents obtained in Israel under the Freedom of Information Act by lawyer Elad Man and seen by Declassified.”
The meetings, which were part of a wider Israeli influence campaign, aimed to garner Western support for Israel as its military actions escalated.
“By this time, Israeli forces had killed over 10,000 Palestinians in Gaza, and Israeli officials had made several public statements of genocidal intent. Kohavi had only stepped down from running Israel’s military months earlier,” Declassified noted.
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Orchestrated with Israel
Declassified reported that Kohavi’s trip was orchestrated with the support of Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Defense.
“The trip was specifically designed to take advantage of a perceived ‘reversal in the attitude of Western countries toward Israel” in light of the October 7 attack.
General Aviv Kohavi served as the Chief of General Staff of the Israeli army from 2019 until January 2023.
During his tenure, he was involved in controversial military actions, including justifying the killing of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in 2022.
Kohavi also defended the destruction of a high-rise in Gaza housing an Associated Press office, a move widely considered a war crime. He was responsible for ordering the opening of fire on Palestinian protesters during the 2018-19 Great March of Return, which resulted in over 200 deaths.
Prior to becoming the Israeli army chief of staff, Kohavi held several key military positions, including commander of the Gaza division and director of military intelligence.
‘Outrageous’
A journalist quoted by Declassified UK expressed concerns, saying, “I find it very difficult to believe that the organization would hold an equivalent meeting with the Hamas government.”
The journalist, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, also said: “Not only is Kohavi’s visit unprecedented but it’s also outrageous that one of the most senior editors at the BBC should court company with a foreign military figure in this way, especially one whose country stands accused of serious human rights violations.”
A spokesperson for the Guardian told Declassified that their editorial teams frequently meet with individuals representing various viewpoints on different topics to inform their reporting.
They emphasized that the meeting was “not an endorsement, but part of responsible journalism,” though they declined to disclose what was discussed.
However, a previous investigation by Declassified revealed that “disgruntled staff at the Guardian have compiled an ‘exhaustive spreadsheet’ with a ‘mountain of examples’ of the paper ‘amplifying unchallenged Israeli propaganda… or treating clearly false statements by Israeli spokespeople as credible’.”
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For his part, a spokesperson for the Financial Times stated that Roula Khalaf met with Kohavi when he attended a meeting with Israel’s ambassador to the UK at the FT’s office in London and that the meeting was held with a group of journalists who cover Middle Eastern events.
The secret meetings have prompted widespread criticism, with Declassified quoting Professor Des Freedman from Goldsmiths, University of London, stating, “Meeting secretly with a senior IDF representative in the middle of a genocidal campaign raises serious questions about integrity and transparency.”
“Wditors at the Guardian, BBC and FT appear willing to open their doors to Israeli spokespeople – no matter how controversial and offensive – in a way which is denied to Palestinian representatives,” Professor Freedman reportedly added.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
