We examine key falsehoods and propaganda Israel promoted in bid to manipulate Gaza narrative and sway global opinion, from claims of "beheaded babies" to assertions of a "most moral army".
Noureldein Ghanem
ISRAEL’S genocide in Gaza isn’t just a campaign of annihilation and mass casualties on the ground; it’s also a campaign that it wants to win by disseminating propaganda and misinformation.
Since October 7, 2023, when Hamas carried out a cross-border attack on Israel, Tel Aviv has been slaughtering besieged Palestinians unabated, with officials reporting a Palestinian death toll of more than 67,000, a figure experts believe to be an undercount.
Amidst ongoing violence, Israel has been carrying out a large-scale misinformation campaign to sanitise its actions in Gaza.
Despite repeated debunking, some Western media outlets initially accepted these falsehoods, particularly early in the war.
While ceasefire talks are taking place in Cairo, Egypt, with the hope of bringing an end to the Israeli violence as it enters its third year, here are some of Tel Aviv’s biggest falsehoods and propaganda efforts directed against the Palestinians.
40 beheaded babies
The ’40 beheaded babies’ claim, though debunked, marked the start of a series of false narratives from Israel regarding Gaza and Hamas. It showed a willingness to spread misinformation.
Turkish Anadolu Agency, which was the first media outlet to debunk the misinformation on “beheading of babies”, quoted an Israeli military spokesperson as saying that the Israeli military could not confirm the claims made by Israeli channel i24News channel that spread like wildfire on social and mainstream media.
Grayzone news outlet later verified the source of this lie as David Ben Zion, a commander of unit 71 of the Israeli army, who happens to be an extremist, illegal Zionist settler and who is a repeated offender when it comes to inciting violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Shortly after spreading the falsehood in his interview with i24News, he was seen in a Facebook video smiling broadly, an incongruous expression for someone claiming to have witnessed a massacre.
Former US President Joe Biden even doubled down on this, falsely claiming that he saw the images of the babies. The White House, however, quickly walked back his statement as it knew such images didn’t exist.
The images of the supposed beheaded babies were never released by Israel, and the bodies of said babies were never found or recovered.
Mass rapes and sexual assaults
Another lie Israel tried to spread is that Hamas committed mass rapes and sexual assaults on October 7.
Similar to the claim of 40 beheaded babies, the sexual assault allegation was disproven. Chaim Otmazgin, a volunteer with ZAKA, an Israeli volunteer organisation, initially claimed that when he saw the victims of October 7, it was enough for him to know that sexual assault had taken place.
However, months later, he told the Associated Press that at the time he “couldn’t think of any other option” and that his allegation wasn’t true.
On the other hand, there is a video evidence of Israeli soldiers raping a male Palestinian prisoner.
There is extensive documentation suggesting that Israel has committed acts of sexual violence against Palestinian prisoners, both male and female.
Hamas uses civilians as human shields
Repeatedly, even before the events in Gaza, Israel has relied heavily on the claim that Hamas uses Palestinian civilians as human shields. This claim is unsubstantiated.
The lie resurfaced during Israel’s genocide in Gaza when Israel alleged that Hamas operated beneath Al Shifa Hospital. However, Israel did not provide any evidence, such as video footage, photographs, or anything that could be considered as proof, to substantiate this claim.
Doctor Mads Gilbert, who has worked at Al Shifa hospital for 16 years, stated that he didn’t see a single sign of any military presence at the hospital.
On the other hand, it has been documented that Israeli forces deliberately target civilians who pose no threat to them.
For example, a video obtained by Al Jazeera shows Israeli forces brutally targeting three Palestinian civilians with an air strike as they were attempting to retrieve a body in Gaza’s al Shujaiah on May 18, 2025.
Israeli forces have also been targeting Palestinian civilians who have been seeking humanitarian aid for sport.
Moreover, Israeli forces have targeted areas designated as “safe zones” for displaced Palestinians. A BBC article earlier this year found that Israel targeted “safe zones” in Khan Younis and Deir al Balah nearly 100 times.
On the contrary, Israel has been accused numerous times of using Palestinians as human shields over the years.
George Bisharat, a professor of law and a prominent commentator on the Middle East affairs, told TRT World that while the number of lies Israel pushed over the last two years is “head-spinning”, this lie had the “wildest application.”
“Of course we know, because of video evidence, that it is, in fact, the Israeli military that literally uses Palestinian civilians as human shields, whether tying them to the hoods of their jeeps while driving through Palestinian neighbourhoods in Jenin, or forcing them to enter buildings before soldiers conducting searches in Gaza,” Bisharat said.
“These practices have been employed by the IDF [Israeli military] for decades, and there is ample documentation of them,” Bisharat added.
Hamas is stealing humanitarian aid
Israel has maintained a full blockade on humanitarian aid entering Gaza since early March and has accused Hamas of stealing the small amount it allowed into the enclave.
However, that accusation turned out to be false when the US Agency for International Development (USAID) on July 25, 2025 stressed that it had found no evidence that Hamas stole any humanitarian aid in Gaza.
One day later, the Israeli army itself told the New York Times that they found no proof Hamas stole humanitarian aid.
On June 6, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admitted that he is paying criminal gangs in Gaza, who have been stealing humanitarian aid.
Hamas subsequently ordered Yasser Abu Shabab, the leader of one of the criminal gangs reportedly paid by Israel, to surrender.
Journalists are working for Hamas
Since the start of the genocide, Israel has accused numerous Palestinian journalists of collaborating with Hamas.
In October 2024, Israel claimed that six Al Jazeera journalists were working for the group. Al Jazeera denied the allegations and accused Israel of laying the foundation for targeting those journalists.
Israel later killed all six journalists, the latest being Anas Al-Sharif.
Al-Sharif said many times that he wasn’t working for Hamas and sought protection before Tel Aviv ultimately assassinated him.
In another attack, Israel killed five journalists in its strike on Nasser Hospital in August. Israel provided an odd explanation for the attack, saying they believed that a camera that was stationed in the hospital belonged to Hamas.
However, Gaza officials and Euro-Med said that the camera belonged to the Reuters news agency.
Reuters conducted its own investigation and concluded that the camera indeed belonged to the British news agency.
Media analysts previously told TRT World that Israel’s pattern of deliberately targeting journalists aims to enforce a media blackout and control narrative in the blockaded enclave where some 300 journalists and media staff have been assassinated by Israel.
Hamas is obstructing ceasefire deals
Another major falsehood Israel perpetuated is that Hamas obstructed the ceasefire agreements, which is also untrue.
In fact, Hamas accepted many of the ceasefire deals that were offered by mediators, including Qatar, Egypt, and even the United States.
In May 2025, Hamas accepted a three-phase ceasefire deal offered by Qatar and Egypt.
In May 2024, it accepted a ceasefire deal that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged Israel to accept.
In August 2025, it accepted a deal presented by US envoy Steve Witkoff.
In January 2025, it also agreed to another ceasefire deal that was hailed by then US leader Joe Biden.
On the other hand, Netanyahu, with US complicity, has blocked many attempts to reach a ceasefire in the blockaded enclave.
In September 2024, Netanyahu rejected ceasefire talks as Israel continued with its genocide in Gaza.
That February, he rejected a ceasefire deal presented by Hamas.
Israeli media reported how Netanyahu sabotaged and rejected a ceasefire deal earlier in 2025.
Even the families of Israeli captives have long accused Netanyahu of obstructing ceasefire talks to prolong the genocide for his own political survival.
The US, on its part, vetoed every single UN Security Council’s Gaza ceasefire resolution, in a total of six vetoes.
Downplaying the number of Palestinian casualties
Israel has consistently downplayed the number of Palestinian casualties resulting from its war on Gaza, often questioning the figures provided by international organisations and local health authorities.
By casting doubt on the accuracy of casualty reports, Israel attempts to minimise the impact of its actions and deflect accusations of war crimes.
Independent observers widely agree that Palestinian casualties are considerably higher than what Israel reports.
Palestinian records indicate over 67,000 deaths and around 170,000 injuries. The UN and other organisations consider these figures reliable.
However, some experts and studies indicate the actual death toll may be closer to 200,000.
Claiming indiscriminate attacks are precise
Israel maintains its Gaza operation is precise, targeting only Hamas fighters and infrastructure.
However, the reality on the ground tells a different story.
Numerous reports from international organisations, human rights groups, and media outlets have reported extensive damage to civilian areas, including homes, schools, hospitals, and refugee camps.
The scale of devastation and civilian deaths, including many women and children, belies Israeli false claims of precision.
Netanyahu’s assertion Israel possesses a moral army
Israeli military has long been described by Israeli leaders and supporters as the “most moral army in the world.” The claim has been repeated since Israel’s genocide in Gaza began.
Some argue the “most moral army” narrative is propaganda that normalises immoral actions. A Haaretz opinion piece argues this label hides military’s abuses.
In the ongoing genocide, Israeli military has caused tens of thousands of Palestinian deaths, including many women and children, amid widespread destruction.
Analysts argue this reflects disproportionate force, collective punishment, or failure to adequately distinguish between combatants and civilians.
Organisations like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have accused the Israeli military of potential war crimes. Along with Netanyahu, the International criminal Court (ICC) has already issued an arrest warrant for former Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. Both ICC fugitives remain unapprehended despite the outstanding notice.
There are documented cases of Israeli military soldiers looting homes, mistreating detainees, or engaging in actions that violate international humanitarian law.
TRT World has previously reported on an Israeli military “looting unit” that has been amassing stolen goods from Palestine and elsewhere.
In the last two years, the “most moral army in the world” has wiped out families in Gaza, pulverised neighbourhoods, dug up mass graves, destroyed cemeteries, bombed shops and businesses, flattened hospitals and morgues, run tanks and bulldozers over dead bodies, tortured jailed Palestinians with dogs and electricity, subjected detainees to mock executions, and even raped many Palestinians.
Exhibiting sadistic behaviour during the genocide, Israeli soldiers taunted Palestinian prisoners by claiming they were playing football with their children’s heads in Gaza.
Israeli soldiers have shot and posted videos of themselves looting Palestinian homes, destroying children’s beds, setting homes on fire, and mocking the displaced residents. Some of the videos show soldiers wearing undergarments belonging to displaced Palestinians and stealing children’s toys.
Then there are details of Israeli soldiers shooting Palestinian civilians, ostensibly for “target practice” or out of sheer boredom.
The BBC has investigated incidents of Israeli forces killing children in Gaza. Of the 160 cases probed, 95 children had been shot in the head or chest – shots that could not be claimed as “intended to wound only.”
SOURCE:TRT World
