RTE, Ireland’s national broadcaster, has apologized for the misinterpretation of footage of a Palestinian woman during one of its bulletins on the Israel-Gaza conflict.
According to the TheJournal.ie, the report from July 23 showed a woman in Gaza shouting in the street with the accompanying voiceover: “This Palestinian said she is ready to strap on an explosive device and fight.”
After the broadcast aired, an online petition was started calling for an immediate apology from RTE, claiming that the broadcast was a mistranslation of what the woman actually said and that she was actually talking about children dying. As of this writing, the petition already had more that 1,400 signatures.
However, RTE, told TheJournal.ie that the report was not a misrepresentation. The broadcaster said that the footage and information came from a news service and contained a lengthy segment of the woman shouting in the street.
“The woman begins by referring to children dying, but she then goes on to say that she is ready to wear an explosive jacket and join the fight. The voiceover on the report was not intended to be a direct translation. The reporter was paraphrasing the woman’s view – clearly stated in the information RTÉ received – that she was ready to resist the Israeli offensive.
“There was no attempt on RTÉ’s part to misconstrue the woman’s message and we apologise for any confusion caused.”
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