What we found

1. States one side's claim as fact

   Minor

   “as Yemen's Houthis launched new attacks on Saudi Arabia”

   What the words do

   Haaretz writes the Houthis' own announcement of fresh strikes as a plain event in its own voice, with no source attached.

   What a reader comes away believing

   A reader takes it as confirmed that new Houthi attacks hit Saudi Arabia on the day of the talks.

   What is actually the case

   Ynet, reporting the same day, presents this as a Houthi claim rather than a verified event, and gives the specific targets the Houthis said they hit. Haaretz attaches no attribution of any kind.

   How we know

   • Ynet News (English) reported“Iran-backed Houthi rebels claimed fresh attacks on Saudi Arabia”Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan hold rare Iran talks as Houthis strike again (opens in a new tab)

   Show it in the article

2. Leaves out who was behind it

   Minor

   What is missing

   Haaretz does not say who called the meeting or who sat in it. Other coverage of the same meeting reports that Pakistan initiated it during army chief Asim Munir's visit to Tehran, that Iran's Supreme National Security Council secretary hosted it, and names the Saudi, Pakistani and Turkish officials present. Without this a reader cannot tell whether this was a Saudi approach, an Iranian initiative or something else.

   How we know

   • Ynet News (English) reported“The Saudi Foreign Ministry said the visit, initiated by Pakistan, was intended to prevent further escalation.”Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan hold rare Iran talks as Houthis strike again (opens in a new tab)
   • Anadolu Agency (English) reported“The meeting, hosted by Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei”Türkiye, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Iran hold quadrilateral meeting in Tehran (opens in a new tab)

   Show where it belongs

3. Leaves out what changes the picture

   Minor

   What is missing

   Haaretz gives no Iranian account of the meeting's purpose. Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson said on the same day that the talks could lay the groundwork for a security framework decided by countries of the region themselves. Without it a reader sees Iran only as the party being talked down.

   How we know

   • Press TV reported“could lay the groundwork for a regional security framework based on the interests and decisions of countries in the region”Iran, Turkey, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia could advance region-led security framework in Tehran: FM spox (opens in a new tab)

   Show where it belongs