Week in Review: Overlooked Headlines for October 17, 2025

The dark side of media coverage in Middle East reporting has come into sharp focus this week with three significant yet underreported stories that challenge mainstream narratives about the Israel-Hamas conflict.

In Gaza, propaganda figure Saleh al-Jafarawi, widely known as “Mr. Fafo,” has been killed – not by Israeli forces as some activists claim, but during internal Palestinian violence. Al-Jafarawi gained notoriety for his inflammatory pro-Hamas propaganda videos, including footage celebrating the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israeli civilians. He later pivoted to creating staged videos depicting himself as either severely wounded or posing as a medical professional.

According to Palestinian Authority reports, al-Jafarawi allegedly embezzled donations intended for rebuilding a children’s hospital. Local Gazans have accused him of funneling these funds to Hamas, though these allegations lack public evidence.

His death occurred while reportedly accompanying Hamas’s al-Sahm unit, known for targeting Palestinian dissidents, during operations against the Doghmosh clan in Gaza City. Since the ceasefire, Hamas forces have killed 52 clan members, including through public executions. Naim Bassem Naim, son of senior Hamas leader Bassem Naim, was also killed in these clashes.

Despite his prominence, major Western media outlets have largely avoided covering the circumstances of al-Jafarawi’s death. Meanwhile, anti-Israel activists and organizations like National Students for Justice in Palestine have used his death to call for violence against “collaborators” – Palestinians accused of working with Israelis. Qatar’s Al Jazeera has characterized the besieged Doghmosh clan as an “Israel-linked militia” without substantiation.

In another underreported development, the Palestinian Authority is rewarding released terrorists with substantial financial compensation through its “pay-for-slay” program. According to Palestinian Media Watch, 160 newly released Palestinians have become millionaires through this system, which rewards terrorists based on the severity of their crimes.

For instance, Mohammed Daoud will receive 2.2 million NIS (approximately $590,000) for murdering a pregnant woman and her five-year-old son. Imad Shehadeh, convicted of raping and murdering a 13-year-old boy, will receive 2.1 million NIS. Baher Badr, who manufactured explosive belts for suicide bombers, will collect 1.1 million NIS. In total, 250 terrorists have been released in recent prisoner exchanges.

This practice directly contradicts points 18-20 of the ceasefire agreement, which call for promoting “tolerance and peaceful co-existence” and reform of the Palestinian Authority. No major Western media outlets have reported on this story.

The third unreported story involves popular Twitch streamer Hasan Piker, who has received favorable coverage from outlets including the New York Times, NPR, and GQ Magazine. These profiles have omitted Piker’s history of extremist views, including hosting a Houthi terrorist on his stream, using antisemitic language, glorifying Hezbollah, and dismissing sexual violence during the October 7 attacks.

Piker now faces accusations of animal abuse after viewers observed him apparently using a shock collar on his dog during a livestream. When his dog Kaya attempted to leave her bed, Piker was seen reaching for something off-screen before the dog yelped in pain and returned to her spot. Despite his denials, internet sleuths identified what appears to be a shock collar remote on his desk in the exact location he reached toward when the dog reacted.

Only a handful of major outlets, including The Hill, National Review, Newsweek, and the New York Post, have covered this story, while the publications that previously profiled Piker have remained silent.

These three stories highlight significant blind spots in mainstream media coverage of Middle East-related issues, pointing to a deeper problem identified by Welsh journalist Gorondwy Rees fifty years ago: the tendency to delegitimize Israel’s existence rather than merely criticize specific policies. Recent protests against the ceasefire by groups like the UK’s Palestine Solidarity Campaign echo this sentiment, suggesting that for some activists, the goal extends beyond ending the current conflict to challenging Israel’s fundamental right to exist.