The New York Times repeated Israel’s baseless claim that Hamas was stealing aid nearly two dozen times before its own sources contradicted that talking point, an Intercept analysis has found, as Palestinian people suffered mass starvation and risked their lives to find food amid Israel’s blockade.

During its near-total blockade on humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip, Israel has repeatedly claimed that Hamas steals aid and that restricting it will help the two parties achieve a ceasefire. The U.S. and Israel pointed to that argument in May when they handed aid operations over to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a contested American nonprofit that funnels Gazans to limited aid sites where the Israeli army has repeatedly opened fire on starving civilians. At each turn, the New York Times dutifully printed the official justifications.

Then the Times published an article on Saturday reporting that there was “no proof” that Hamas was stealing aid from the United Nations, citing four anonymous Israeli sources. The story noted that the U.N. aid system, which provided the bulk of the aid to Gaza, was “largely effective,” and there was no evidence that Hamas regularly stole from the U.N., though the unnamed sources claimed that Hamas did steal from smaller organizations.

But in 61 articles related to Gaza’s hunger crisis the Times published since January, 23 included Israel’s accusations that Hamas was stealing aid. Nine of those stories did not include opposing statements refuting Israel’s claim. Twelve articles of the 61 analyzed by The Intercept cited concerns about Hamas diverting aid without an explicit accusation. At the time of publication, the Times had not added a correction or update to these stories to indicate that the claims were false.

None of the articles provided any evidence in support of the claims except for the comments of Israeli officials, who work for a government that has repeatedly spread disinformation, including in its record-breaking fatal attacks on journalists, aid workers, and children.

In a statement to The Intercept, New York Times spokesperson Charlie Stadtlander said that the paper’s journalists have done “deep reporting on both Israel and Hamas’ actions and tactics during the war, and will continue to report hard and publish facts.”

“The Times has reported deeply, fairly and accurately on the war in Gaza since it began, including the hardships and food shortages faced by Gazans, and when government officials provide claims and accusations, our reporters put them in context,” Stadtlander said.

Even before the Times’s Saturday story, aid groups........

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