The report, sensationally titled “Using War as Cover to Target Journalists,” contains serious factual errors that render the accusation that Israel “targets journalists” false. The Times reports:

Mahmoud al-Kumi and Hussam Salama worked as cameramen for Al-Aqsa TV, which is run by Hamas and whose reporting frequently reflects that affiliation. They were covering events in central Gaza when a missile struck their car, which, according to Al-Aqsa, was clearly marked with the letters “TV.”

Yet al-Kumi and Salama were not journalists—in fact, they had spray-painted “TV” on their car in an attempt to disguise themselves as journalists and thereby prevent the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) from firing on them. The disguise didn’t fool anyone except for David Carr and the New York Times. Who in fact were they?

Muhammed Shamalah, commander of Hamas forces in the southern Strip and head of the Hamas militant training programs, was targeted by an Israeli air strike while driving a car clearly labelled [sic] “TV”, indicating it to be a press vehicle, abusing the protection afforded to journalists.

(Free Beacon sources confirmed that Shamalah and Salama are the same person, despite the different spellings of the name.)

Instead of condemning Hamas for attempting to pass off terrorists as journalists, Carr promotes the ploy and condemns the IDF for killing terrorists he thinks were journalists—despite ample evidence of their real profession.

The Times also claims that their cover as “cameramen for Al-Aqsa TV,” a Hamas propaganda outfit, renders them immune from being targeted by the Israeli military. The U.S. State Department classifies Al-Aqsa TV as a terrorist organization, a fact left unmentioned by Carr, further misleading readers.

Carr also claims that a precision Israeli missile strike on one floor of a media building that eliminated four senior Islamic jihad terrorists—after which even Islamic jihad acknowledged the deaths of their operatives—was merely an attack that “might have included legitimate targets.” It is unclear why Carr insists the strike only “might” have eliminated terrorists.

The report is only the latest in a series of recent Times articles that appear to deny or downplay the presence of terrorists in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli Defense Forces’ (IDF) principal objective in Gaza is to rid Palestinian terrorists of sophisticated Iranian-produced rockets that are capable of striking deep into Israel’s heartland, including Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

These rockets originated in Sudan and were then smuggled into Gaza with Iran’s help, sources said.

The existence of these advanced Fajr-5 rockets reveals the deepening ties between Iran and its terrorist proxies in Gaza and Sudan, where the rockets were housed before shipment.

“To put it simply, it was Iranian-made Fajr-5s, imported via Sudan, that prompted this war,” said Jonathan Schanzer, vice president for research at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. “Iran’s fingerprints are all over this.”

Hamas terrorists in Gaza were provided around 100 Fajr-5 rockets by Iran. The rockets are capable of travelling nearly 50 miles, putting both Jerusalem and Tel Aviv within their reach. These missiles differ drastically from the crude rockets typically fired by Hamas terrorists.

The Fajr-5 missiles are believed to have been smuggled from Sudan into Gaza via Egypt’s porous Sinai region.

Sudan, a longtime ally of Iran, acted as a “key transit point” for these weapons, Schanzer said.

“[Sudanese capital] Khartoum has long been a transit point for Iranian-made rockets to Gaza,” he said. “The smuggling route goes up through Egypt and across the Sinai [desert] into the tunnels and into Gaza.”

Israel was the prime suspect after a weapons facility in south Khartoum mysteriously exploded in late October. The Jewish state’s attack on the Yarmouk military manufacturing facility was preventive in nature, experts said.

“I am convinced that the October bombing of an IRGC weapons factory in Khartoum was part one of this operation,” Schanzer said. “The Israelis learned of a large cache of Fajr-5s and destroyed it there.”

“But it appears that around 100 of them had already made it into Gaza,” he added. “This prompted the Israelis hunt down the Fajrs during this latest round of fighting.”

Several of the Fajr-5 missiles have landed near Jerusalem in the last week. Others have crashed by Tel Aviv, forcing more than a million Israelis to take refuge in bomb shelters.

Smuggling has become easier and less restricted in Gaza following the fall of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who was known to bar the passage of sophisticated weaponry such as the Fajr-5 missiles.

“One of the main ways that Hamas acquires weapons is via an extensive network of tunnels under the Gaza-Egypt border,” the Israeli Defense Forces stated in a report earlier this month. “Since Hamas seized power in the Gaza Strip in 2007, the terrorist group’s smuggling efforts have increased. With funding from Iran, Hamas has improved its stockpile of weapons.”

Israel’s current military incursion into Gaza is different from its 2008 Operation Cast Lead, Schanzer said.

“Cast Lead was about Israel sustaining too many rockets” from Gaza, he said. “This is about Israel trying to get rid of a certain kind of rocket. They had a very specific goal here.”

Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren condemned Iran’s arming of Hamas in a recent interview with Fox News.

“Our problem is not our border with Gaza,” Fox News quoted Oren saying on Monday. “Among the rockets being fired at us are the Fajr-5 rockets, which come directly from Iran. We know that Hamas terrorists have trained with the Iranians. There’s a strong connection.”

Terrorists in the Gaza Strip have also made use of Iranian-made M-75 rockets, which have reached areas near Jerusalem. The long-range rockets are believed to have been assembled with Iran’s help.

It was believed that Iran pulled funding for Hamas as economic sanctions and other factors lightened Tehran’s purse.

“There’s a prevailing assumption in Washington that Iran has been on the out with Hamas and that is absolutely wrong,” Schanzer said. “Iran likely never left because it probably took months to smuggle these [weapons] in—the surprise here is that Iran is still very much a player in Gaza”

Fighting in Gaza dovetailed with a series of military drills in Iran that are being viewed as a warning to the West.

Iran has also helped hackers in the Gaza Strip launch cyber attacks on Israel, according to reports.

“The Iranians may not have ordered the day and hour for Hamas to launch its missiles, but they have been the guiding hand behind Hamas’ rearmament,” said Michael Rubin, a former Pentagon adviser on Iran and Iraq.

Others believe Israel’s campaign in Gaza is a prelude to an attack on Iran. The IDF has launched more than 1,300 air assaults on targets in Gaza.

“The last 6 days of fighting may in fact be a prelude to what looks like an increasingly inevitable military strike against Iran’s nuclear program,” said Jennifer Griffin of Fox News on Monday.

Iran’s increased presence in Gaza creates a new reality for Israel.

“Those who deny Iranian involvement with Hamas are like the new Truthers, those who couldn’t be convinced that Al Qaeda was responsible for 9/11 no matter how many times Bin Laden claimed credit,” said Rubin. “Let’s just hope the White House and Langley aren’t filled with these new Truthers.”

Israel is “running out of targets” after launching more than 1,300 coordinated attacks on terrorist entities and weapons facilities in the Gaza Strip since the start of Operation Pillar of Defense, Harel told reporters during a conference call organized by the Israel Project Monday.

“We are moving quite fast to a turning point,” he said.

While it is legal according to international law for Israel to target sites in highly populated areas, “it wouldn’t be moral or very smart of the Israel side,” Harel said. Israel will have to decide whether to escalate hostilities or strike a truce with Hamas. 

“It’s thinner and thinner and we will have to decide what to do,” he said. “We are about 24 to 48 hours from this junction.”

More than 30,000 Israeli troops remain at the Israel-Gaza border in the event a full-scale ground incursion is ordered. Nearly 75,000 IDF reservists also are on stand-by should a ground assault be necessary to stop Hamas’ attacks.

Hamas would face “a lot of casualties” if Israeli forces launch a ground operation, Harel said, adding that such an operation would “be bad for both sides.”

Hamas continues to fire hundreds of rockets at Israeli citizens: A rocket struck a school early Tuesday in Ashkelon, a town in Israel’s southern region that is regularly targeted by Hamas militants.

More than 90 schools, 61 kindergartens, and three million Israeli citizens are within striking distance of Hamas, according to the Israel Project. Nearly 2,000 rockets and mortars have struck Israel thus far in 2012.

Militants have launched 45 rockets at Israel since the early morning hours of Monday and nearly 900 have fallen since the IDF began its military operation last week, according to an IDF spokesperson.

Three Iranian-made Fajr-5 rockets were fired towards Tel Aviv on Sunday, further revealing Iran’s role in the arming of Hamas terrorists.

Israel has made a concerted effort to avoid civilian causalities in Gaza and has treated Palestinian patients in its own hospitals, according to reports.

It also has delivered multiple truckloads of humanitarian aid into Gaza during the conflict, including medical equipment and food, according to the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Hamas has increased its anti-Semitic propaganda since hostilities began.

“From the Al-Qassam Brigades to the Zionist soldiers: The Al-Qassam Brigades love death more than you love life,” the terror group said in a video message broadcast on Al-Aqsa TV, according to Palestinian Media Watch (PMW).

Another video promises fierce reprisals on Israeli soldiers and citizens.

“Oh occupier, we are coming towards you. Leave our land,” the video states, according to PMW. “All of Palestine is ours. There is nothing here for you but death. There is nothing here for you but to be killed and to leave.”

Hamas has been launching rockets near civilian homes, mosques, and schools in an effort to increase causalities among its own people, according to footage it recently broadcast on Al-Aqsa TV.

Iran has sought to stoke tensions since hostilities broke out, providing Hamas terrorists with sophisticated weaponry and urging other Arab countries to send troops into Palestine.

“Regional countries should send their forces, weapons, and equipment to the Palestinian people so that they will be used for confrontation with the Zionist regime instead of being used to cause attrition and confrontation between two Muslim groups in Syria,” Ali Larijani, chair of Iran’s parliament, was quoted as saying on Sunday according to the Mehr News Agency.

Larijani also took aim at President Barack Obama in his remarks.

“U.S. President Barack Obama fulfilled its shameful election pledge [to support] the Zionist regime through expressing satisfaction with the attacks, and after getting the go-ahead from the West, the Zionist regime presumptuously organized a savage attack and openly announced that it would mount an operation due to the Palestinian resistance’s military capability,” he was quoted as saying.

The video depicts multiple rockets being launched at “Zionist sites” from several areas and contains the official seal of the Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the militant group Palestinian Islamist Jihad.

The video provides further evidence that Palestinian militants have greatly increased their attacks on Israel in recent days.

Violence between Israel and terrorist forces has substantially increased since Saturday, when Palestinians fired an anti-tank missile at an Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) jeep that was canvassing Israel’s border area with Gaza.

The IDF said more than 121 rockets have hit Israel since Saturday Nov. 10. The White House has remained silent about the attacks.

“It’s worth noting that Hamas has been previously documented on several instances firing rockets at Israel,” the IDF noted in a statement to the Washington Free Beacon that included video of Hamas militants firing rockets at Israel from homes in Gaza.

“Hamas knows that at best, Obama is all bark and no bite and at worst, is actively hostile to Israel’s right to self defense,” said former Pentagon adviser on Iraq Michael Rubin. “Now that Obama is reelected, Hamas feels it’s in the driver’s seat when it comes to Middle East policy.”

Rubin said Hamas and other terrorists see an opening.

“Terrorists always try to gauge the tipping point, that is how far they can go before they must fear a reprisal,” he said. “Here, they can watch Obama’s inaction toward Syria and conclude there is no tipping point.”

Four Israeli soldiers were wounded in Saturday’s tank attack. This prompted an Israeli military response that killed four Palestinian militants.

“Two days ago, Palestinian terrorists in the Gaza Strip dramatically escalated their attacks against Israel—firing an anti-tank missile at an IDF jeep as well as launching barrages of rockets at Israeli civilians,” the IDF said in a separate statement.

Violence has only increased since then and fears are mounting that a violent tit-for-tat between Israel and its enemies could lead to a full-scale war in a volatile region that is still reeling from a series of bloody revolutions.

Syrian militants joined the battle Sunday when they fired mortars on an Israeli neighborhood and a nearby military outpost.

Israel responded to Palestinian violence in Gaza early Sunday by targeting “a weapon manufacturing facility, two weapon storage facilities and two rocket launching sites in the northern Gaza Strip,” according to the IDF.

This prompted militants to fire dozens more rockets into southern Israel. Several of these rockets struck the town of Sderot, which often faces the brunt of militant attacks due to its proximity to the border.

The violence has forced more than one million Israeli citizens to take cover in bomb shelters, according to The Israel Project.

Sunday’s barrage led the Israeli Air Force to target “a tunnel and a weapons storage facility in northern Gaza, as well as a rocket launching site in southern Gaza,” the IDF announced.

The attacks show that Israel’s “Iron Dome” missile defense system is ill-equipped to defend the state from heavy swarms of rockets. The U.S.-subsidized system has a higher success rate shooting down individual attacks.