When the story first broke two weeks ago that Hallel and Yagel Yaniv, two brothers from Har Bracha, were murdered in the Arab village of Huwarrah in Samaria, the media’s response was predictable, although a bit softer than normal. This particular attack was so brutal that it was difficult for even the most left-leaning outlets to NOT condemn the terrorist, and express sympathy for the brothers’ family. Of course, the blatant anti-Israel media still found a way to blame Israel. 

It was only hours after the murder took place, that the international media found a new, related story to stick their attention to (much to their relief I’m sure). After a group of Jewish teenagers threw rocks and set several fires in Huwarrah, the world discovered their main story to focus on, ensuring that they wouldn’t have to evoke anymore sympathy for the Yaniv family. 

The media reported that violent, radical settlers descended on the town of Huwarrah, burning dozens of homes and cars. They claimed that the settlers killed a Palestinian man (although unverified), and the end result was a pogrom equivalent to the Holocaust. In the aftermath, more than a million shekels were raised to go to the villagers who were affected by the so-called pogroms, and the vandalism received universal condemnation from those on the right and left, conservative and liberal media outlets, politicians and organizations. 

There was just one small problem. Much of what was reported is not true. 

Hallel and Yagel were murdered early in the afternoon of February 26th. That evening after dark, we headed to the town of Huwarrah with our camera crew to investigate what was going on for ourselves as we had heard rumors of riots and protests. Admittedly, when we got close to the town, it seemed as if there was a riot taking place as there were flames rising high in the air next to one building, and there were several smaller fires in the area. On closer inspection, we found one Arab car junkyard that was in flames, and several isolated fires, some bonfires around Arab houses, and a few other cars that were aflame. 

A few hundred meters from the village, there were several dozen teenage boys, throwing rocks, and I assume, some were lighting fires. Closer to the village, there were at least a hundred Jewish families – mothers, fathers, sons and daughters, silently standing in the road, protesting the fact that their brothers had been horrifically murdered in the village just a few short hours before. 

To make sure we got the facts straight, we went back to Huwarrah a few days after the attack after things had quieted down. We found one junkyard that had been burned, probably 40-50 cars in total. On the outskirts of town, there were several smaller junkyard lots that had each been partially burned, totally 10-20 more cars. There was a nearby house with its windows broken, and an apartment farther inside the town that had clearly been burned. That was it. 

To be clear, we don’t condone any violence or vandalism. The majority of the leaders of the Jewish communities in these areas oppose violence against the Arabs, including the head rabbi of Har Bracha and the Yaniv family themselves. In fact, I have not heard one person who did not oppose the vandalism that was committed by a small group of Jewish boys that night. 

The actual deeds committed however, while still not the right course of action, were a far cry from what the media reported as a “pogrom similar to the Holocaust”. There was even a video on social media of a cameraman filming an obviously burned out house. The only problem is that this particular house was burned in an internal Arab feud two years ago. I drove by when it was on fire at the time. 

Leftists in Israel, and many around the world, I’m sure, were much too quick in starting a fundraiser for the supposed “pogrom” in Huwarrah. If any of them are reading this, they should know much of the money will probably go to the owner of the junkyard that was burned, who, ironically enough, is a terrorist who spent five years in an Israeli prison. 

The sickening part of this entire saga, is how quickly the media pounced on the story of the supposed settlers that descended on Huwarrah, while at the same time abandoning the more horrific story of Hallel and Yagel, murdered simply because they were Jews who lived in the land of Israel. Since the terrorist attack was so brutal, it would have been difficult for them to switch to condemning Israel as quickly as they normally would have. When two young men are executed in cold blood, it is not a good look to lay the blame on the victims, even for the mainstream media. Since a few dozen vandals threw rocks and set cars on fire however, the media had the excuse they needed to quickly switch to unending condemnations of Israel and the Jewish people. 

The world has a weird fetish with hating Jews and the nation of Israel. Often they don’t need an excuse. The media just publishes lies and false propaganda, and the Jew-haters go along with it. This time however, they pounced on a story that was blown entirely out of proportion, using it as their catalyst to drive their hatred for God’s land and people even deeper. 

As a Christian Zionist who saw the entire saga up close and first hand, I find it particularly horrific and sickening. 

Luke Hilton is the Director of Marketing for HaYovel & Author & Host at The Israel Guys Media.