Biden reportedly raged over New York Times' coverage of Gaza hospital explosion

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During a White House meeting, President Biden reportedly blasted The New York Times’ controversial coverage of an explosion near a Gaza Strip hospital.  

A report from Semafor alleged that Biden met with Wall Street executives in the White House’s Roosevelt Room last week and discussed the paper along with its claim that Israel was behind the explosion. He was particularly disturbed such a headline appeared "in an American newspaper."

"Israeli Strike Kills Hundreds in Hospital, Palestinians Say," the original New York Times headline read on Oct. 17.

According to Semafor, "[Biden] thought the headline was irresponsible and could have triggered military escalation in the Middle East." Within the same day of the headline’s publication and others like it blaming Israel for the blast, prominent Arab leaders canceled their meeting with Biden.

The Times received intense backlash for its headline on Oct. 17 as well as its coverage on the explosion. The story claimed, through information released by the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, that Israeli airstrikes caused an explosion at a Gaza hospital that killed hundreds. Israel denied the claims and presented evidence that the Palestinian Islamic Jihad was behind the blast. U.S. intelligence confirmed that Israel was not behind the explosion.

The Times soon released a lengthy editor’s note apologizing for its reliance on unverified claims by Hamas.