The UK’s Jewish Chronicle fired Israeli freelance writer Elon Perry after concluding that he may have fabricated stories on the war against Hamas.
“The Jewish Chronicle has concluded a thorough investigation into freelance journalist Elon Perry, which commenced after allegations were made about aspects of his record,” the paper said.
“While we understand he did serve in the Israel Defense Forces, we were not satisfied with some of his claims. We have therefore removed his stories from our website and ended any association with Mr Perry.”
Although the London-based newspaper did not specify which claims it investigated, Israel’s Channel 13 reported that important details about his biography were complete fiction.
The report stated that he was not a commando fighter in the 1976 Entebbe raid in which more than 100 hostages were rescued, he was not a Tel Aviv University professor, he never served as an undercover combatant in Palestinian territories, and he was not a journalist for 25 years. His real name, the report said, is not Elon Perry but Eli Yifrah.
Moreover, Yifrah-Perry was sentenced for an infraction during his military service in Israel and while under arrest he snatched a rifle and shot bullets in the air, according to the report.
Allegations against Yifrah-Perry were raised after he reported via the Jewish Chronicle that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was planning to escape the Gaza Strip through the Philadelphi Corridor to Egypt en route to Iran, while taking Israeli hostages with him.
The “exclusive report” was published a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a press conference in which he warned of an Israeli withdrawal from the Philadelphi Corridor. Presenting a hypothetical scenario, he said that Hamas could exploit Israel’s concession by smuggling hostages into the Sinai desert and from there to “Iran or Yemen.”
In the wake of the report, Hebrew media requested comments from the Israel Defense Forces, with all sources rejecting the story and stating they were unaware of any such intelligence information.
IDF Spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari dismissed the Jewish Chronicle report, saying there was no evidence to back it.
Yifrah-Perry published another report that was highly likely fabricated, claiming that Mossad agents clad in green hid in trees across the building in Tehran in which Hamas Political Bureau head Ismail Haniyeh lodged during his assassination.
The British publication apologized to its readers, saying that it “maintains the highest journalistic standards in a highly contested information landscape and we deeply regret the chain of events that led to this point. We apologise to our loyal readers and have reviewed our internal processes so that this will not be repeated.”
Source: JNS
