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April 23, 2013

Ha'aretz Lost in Translation: A Shocking Holocaust Comparison

Once again, Ha'aretz translators are again engaging in creative, even shocking, translations, inserting text into the English edition which is diametrically opposed to the Hebrew original. In an article today regarding a judicial proceeding against Palestinian prisoner Samer Issawi, who is refusing food, the English edition reports online:

During the hearing, which took place next door to Issawi's hospital room, he stood up and removed his clothes. He looked very thin and skeleton-like, according to witnesses present at the hearing. "You showed this look a few days ago when you showed the victims of the Holocaust," Issawi then told the hearing, referring to Holocaust Remembrance Day earlier this month. Those who attended the meeting report that Judge Kaufmann and the Military Prosecutor's Office representatives were shocked at how Issawi looked, and agreed to the comparison. (Emphasis added.)

The wording in the print edition is very similar, and includes the error:

But the original Hebrew article by Jack Khoury does not state that the judge and prosecutors agreed with Issawi's comparison of himself to Holocaust victims. Rather it says that they were shocked by it. The Hebrew reads:





נוכחי�? בדיון סיפרו כי השופטת ונציגי הפרקליטות הזדעזעו ממר�?ה העציר וג�? מההשוו�?ה שעשה

It states (CAMERA's translation):

People who attending the hearing said that the judge and representatives of the prosecutor's office were shocked by the prisoner's appearance and by the comparison that he made.

CAMERA staff have contacted editors and requested a correction. (For earlier Ha'aretz corrections prompted by CAMERA, see here.) Stay tuned for an update.

Update: For the Hebrew version of this post, please see Presspectiva.

Update II, 2:40 PM EST -- Ha'aretz Commendably Corrects Online

Following communication from CAMERA staff, Ha'aretz editors promptly corrected the online article, which now states:

Those who attended the meeting report that Judge Kaufmann and the Military Prosecutor's Office representatives were shocked at how Issawi looked, and by the comparison that he made.

In addition, the following note appears at the end of the article:

Stay tuned for details about a correction in the print edition.

Update III, April 24, Ha'aretz Runs Print Correction

Posted by TS at April 23, 2013 04:38 AM

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