'Pogroms: nay or yay?': Jerusalem Post in trouble over poll on settler violence

The Israeli newspaper  The Jerusalem Post has caused outrage by publishing a short-lived Twitter poll asking if readers condoned terrorist settler attacks against Palestinians, amid growing calls for editor Avi Mayer to resign. 

On Thursday, the right-wing Israeli paper posted a Twitter poll asking readers whether they agreed with “price tag” actions by rampaging settlers in the occupied West Bank attacking Palestinian residents and their properties.

“What is your opinion on the 'price tag' actions carried out by settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank in response to the terrorist attack that resulted in the death of four Israelis?” asked the Jerusalem Post. 

Just imagine if a Palestinian publication released a twitter poll asking if it’s followers supported a terrorist attack.@AviMayer should resign. Disgraceful. pic.twitter.com/pcxlqUJTV3

— Yonah Lieberman 🔥 (@YonahLieberman) June 21, 2023

The term 'price tag', was coined by Jewish extremist settlers in the last decade to refer to orchestrated and indiscriminate settler revenge attacks on Palestinian civilians in the occupied territories.

'Price tag' attacks had often been employed as a show of force to deter the Israeli government from taking any action over unauthorised settlement expansion. 

Before the poll was taken down, 197 readers responded to the poll - though the results were never published. 

After taking the poll down, the Jerusalem Post issued a retraction.

“A short time ago, we tweeted a poll that was in poor taste. That tweet has been deleted as it did not meet our editorial standards

"This paper has consistently rejected and repeatedly condemned vigilante attacks on innocent Palestinians and will continue to do so,” claimed the outlet. 

“Pogroms: nay or yay? - actual poll by Jerusalem Post,” tweeted think-tank chief Michael Bueckert in response.

Commentators in Israel and beyond condemned the poll as well as the Jerusalem Post’s retraction, which was viewed as half-hearted and offensive. 

“The Jerusalem Post published a Twitter poll asking their followers if they support lynching and now has apologized for it like it was a typo,” tweeted journalist Zaid Jilani. 

Settler violence against Palestinians has spiralled since Netanyahu’s far-right governing coalition came to power in January this year. 

“The fact that Jerusalem Post is willing to openly poll on whether its followers support hate crimes comes to show how blatantly committed it is to the dehumanisation of Palestinians,” lamented another social media user. 

It’s not the first time you’ve carried out a poll like that.

Your extremist paper contributes to the climate of hatred.

— Naks Bilal (@NaksBilal) June 21, 2023