And the Daily Mail did the same under the caption: “Reduced to skin and bones in Gaza: Horrifying story behind photo of starving child with a plastic bag as a nappy.”
However, Honest Reporting, a pro-Israel media monitoring organisation, pointed out that the reports left out the fact that Mohammed suffers from a “muscular disorder”, which “requires ongoing physical therapy and specialised nutrition”.
Some outlets failed to mention the boy’s illness, only attributing his emaciated appearance to starvation[Missing Credit]According to a CNN report on Saturday, the boy’s mother said that, when he was receiving treatment for the disorder, “he was ‘happy’ and ‘could sit upright’”.
“In other words, Muhammad is not simply a victim of starvation. His condition stems from a health disorder, not from a lack of food caused by Israel,” said Honest Reporting.
Likewise, pro-Israel investigator David Collier published pictures from the same image set, showing Mohammed’s mother and three-year-old brother showing no visible signs of malnutrition and appearing “healthy and fed”.
Collier said: “This is a propaganda war – and images like this are its weapons.
“The people who suffer are not just Israelis. They’re Palestinians too. And our media has become a vital part of that machine.
“It isn’t just a journalistic collapse – it’s a moral disgrace.”
And questions have also been raised about the source of the images, which are attributed to photographer Ahmed Jihad Ibrahim al-Arini on behalf of the Anadolu news agency.
Andolu is the state-run news agency of Turkey and, as such, is affiliated with the Erdogan government – an administration which is deeply hostile to Israel.
And, in Telegram posts seen by the JC after they were published by the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (Camera), al-Arini called a terror attack “heroic” and labelled a Hamas massacre a “resistance operation”.
Indeed, President Erdogan has previously drawn international condemnation by calling for the Jewish State’s destruction.
An Honest Reporting spokesperson added: “Yes, there is suffering in Gaza. But the blame lies squarely with Hamas.
“It started the war and continues to prolong it by refusing to release the hostages or accept a ceasefire. It has looted aid meant for civilians.
“Time and again, [the media] have run with unverified images and unchecked claims. No due diligence. No questions asked. Because these stories fit the narrative they want to tell – that Israel is waging a war against a helpless civilian population.
“Every outlet that promoted this false narrative must update their coverage to reflect the full truth: Muhammad has a medical condition. He is not simply a victim of starvation, and the image has been presented in a misleading and incomplete way.”