Introduction
A few days ago, a video of an argument between a group of Jewish kids and two Christian women in Jerusalem, Israel started spreading on social media showing. The video has been widely shared with the misleading claim that these kids are Palestinian Muslims harassing Christian tourists. In India, a main propagandist @raviagrawal3, shared the video with the same misleading claim. However, it’s essential to dissect the facts and provide a more exact picture of what happened.
Several reports and individuals on Twitter condemned the incident as an attack on Christian tourists. A video by Middle East Monitor suggested that two Christian tourists were under attack from Israeli children. Meanwhile, Russia Today reported that two Christian women were allegedly “beaten” on the streets of Jerusalem by Jewish kids merely for saying Jesus.
The Full Story of Jewish kids and two Christian women
While the video does show the children misbehaving with the two women, it doesn’t present the full context. We conducted a Google reverse search and found the original video on a YouTube channel [archive]. This confirmed that the kids were Jewish and the women were evangelists, debunking the false claims about Palestinian Muslims and Christian tourists.
Moreover, David Lange, an activist and host, pointed out that the video was edited and failed to show the complete story. According to Lange, the two women were not tourists but Christian missionaries who actively converted the Jewish kids, trying to convince them to convert to Christianity. They verbally abused the children’s faith, claiming it was false, and insisted on the superiority of Jesus.
The aggressive reaction by the Jewish kids towards the Christian women arose from feeling provoked and insulted regarding their faith. These women were part of ‘Sarah’s ministries for Jesus Christ,’ led by controversial preacher Sarah Walis, known for targeting non-Christians, especially Jews and Muslims, in Israel.
Conclusion
The incident in Jerusalem involving Jewish kids and Christian women missionaries was portrayed inaccurately as an attack on tourists by Muslim Kids. In reality, it was a result of aggressive proselytizing, sparking a reaction from the children. This situation highlights the importance of considering the full context before forming judgments based on misleading information.
The issue of forceful conversion by Christians has been a long-pending concern for society particularly in India, where evangelists often target vulnerable members of the Hindu community, using various incentives and tactics like luring them with money, food and jobs. The Supreme Court of India has declared forced religious conversion a threat to national security, emphasizing that it must be stopped. The Indian Constitution guarantees the freedom of religion, but forceful conversion or luring individuals is deemed unacceptable.
Following thorough analysis and fact-checking, our team has investigated the claim. You can refer to the findings of this inquiry in the Twitter thread embedded below.
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— D-Intent Data (@dintentdata) September 11, 2023
ANALYSIS: Misleading
FACT: Propaganda accounts are circulating a video that shows a group of kids attacking and misbehaving with a group of 2-3 individuals in Israel. The video has been shared with the misleading claim that these kids are Palestinian Muslims, (1/3) pic.twitter.com/4YLQwNyKDp
Claim: The video shows an attack on Christian tourists by Palestinian Muslim children.
Fact: The video captures an altercation between Jewish children and Christian missionaries engaged in aggressive conversion.
Read Also: Fact-Check: Digitally Altered Old Video Of KBC Contestant Shashwat Goel Circulated With False Claims
