The senior press official was dismissed following internal disputes on language used to describe Israel’s killing of journalists in Gaza as well as the forced expulsion of Palestinians in the besieged enclave.
The United States’ State Department’s press officer for Israeli-Palestinian affairs, Shahed Ghoreishi, was fired this week amid growing internal tensions concerning the acknowledgment of the killing of journalists by Israel in Gaza, according to a report by the Washington Post.
Al Jazeera correspondents Anas Al-Sharif and Mohammed Qraiqea, and camera operators Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal and Moamen Aliwa were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a press tent outside of Gaza City’s Al-Shifa Hospital on August 10.
Israel, without giving any evidence, claimed Al-Sharif was affiliated with Hamas, a charge Al Jazeera has denied.
In response to the killing, Ghoreishi recommended including a line in a press statement saying “we mourn the loss of journalists and express condolences to their families”.
However, senior State Department officials rejected the suggestion in an internal email dated August 10, writing, “no response is needed. We can’t be sending out condolences if we are unsure of this individual’s actions”.
Following the Israeli airstrike that killed the Al Jazeera team, U.S. State Department Spokesperson, Tammy Bruce spoke at a press briefing mirroring Israel’s justification for targeting the press tent.
Israel has targeted the press since it waged the genocide in the Gaza Strip in October 2023, killing at least 238 journalists.
The journalists are among more than 61,700 Palestinians killed in the blockaded territory over the past 22 months, with thousands of others trapped under the rubble.
Israel has also starved 235 people to death, including 106 children, according to the latest figures by Gaza’s health ministry.
Another internal incident reported by the Washington Post occurred concerning language used to describe the force displacement of Palestinians in Gaza.
The former press officer had proposed a line in rejection, but senior State Department officials rejected it, instructing staff to remove the sentence, despite previous similar public remarks from U.S. President Donald Trump and his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.
According to the WP report, Ghoreishi’s firing also follows a broader pattern of internal disagreements, particularly with senior adviser to the U.S. Embassy in Israel David Milstein, known for aggressively pushing pro-Israel language in official statements.
