Advertisements about “Israeli war crimes” slated to be carried by buses in downtown Seattle have been rejected.

King County Executive Dow Constantine on Dec. 24 ordered the Metro Transit system to reject the ad as well as any other new noncommercial advertising.

The Seattle Midwest Awareness Campaign paid $1,794 to place the advertisements on 12 buses beginning Dec. 27, the day Israel entered Gaza to stop rocket attacks on its southern communities.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

The ads feature a group of children looking at a demolished building under the heading “Israeli War Crimes: Your tax dollars at work.”

A group known as the American Freedom Defense Initiative had also submitted two advertisements to the Seattle transit company to counter the original ad

Dow ordered a review of the transit system’s advertising policy; under the current policy advertisements are accepted for Seattle buses as long as they do not publicize pornography, alcohol and tobacco, and as long as the images and material used don’t interfere with public safety or incite a riot.

Constantine said Dec. 24 that the signs presented “significant security concerns.”

“Given the dramatic escalation of debate in the past few days over these proposed ads, and the submission of inflammatory response ads, there is now an unacceptable risk of harm to or disruption of service to our customers should these ads run,” Constantine said.

The transit authority had received more than 1,200 e-mails about the anti-Israel ad last week, mostly against it. Most of the comments came from outside the Seattle area, according to reports.

Ed Mast, spokesman for the Seattle Mideast Awareness Campaign, said his organization “will take action to keep our message alive.” He did not specify whether that action would include a lawsuit.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount