Palestine Chronicle, as a website, was established in September 1999 by Palestinian-American journalist and writer Ramzy Baroud, who was born in a refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. The website consisted of several sections: book reviews, photographs, analysis, and the "daily news" section in which Palestinians shared their experiences of life under Israeli-occupied territories. The Palestine Chronicle sought to hire "talented" writers living in the country to write their life stories for the website.[4] The Common Dreams piece about the website said that it maintains itself by small donations and primarily reports about Palestinian people's "resistance" and "endurance" to Israeli forces.[6] Ramzy Baroud works as the director and editor-in-chief of the Palestine Chronicle, he also reportedly received a PhD in Palestine studies from the University of Exeter and was a former writer for Middle East Eye and The Brunei Times.[5] Reportedly, six editors of the website are affiliated with Iranian media outlets, including Baroud himself, who wrote op-eds for Kayhan. Three editors of the website contributed to the American Herald Tribune, a website seized by the DoJ in 2020 for allegedly being linked to the IRGC.[7]
Baroud, in a 2020 interview with the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, said he was motivated to create Palestine Chronicle after being frustrated by perceived excessive pro-Israeli coverage in the mainstream media. He says that when the website was founded, it was a blog run only by him, but he gradually hired more and more editors, eventually turning Palestine Chronicle into a news company. He said it became one of the main sources focused on Palestine, alongside The Electronic Intifada. He also shared that the website was available in the French language back then.[8] Reportedly, due to it being a news website and not a physcal publication, Palestine Chronicle was initially dismissed as a source. Baroud said he experienced frustration after being called an "online journalist". Baroud also said that reporting from the perspective of the "Palestinian resistance" is "crucial" to the publication.[9]
Palestine Chronicle now identifies itself as a non-profit organization (501(c) organization) and says that its mission is to report on "human rights, national struggles, freedom and democracy",[10] it reportedly covers local and international news related to Palestine from the country's perspective and is considered to be a "multimedia opinion website".[3] Records from the Internal Revenue Service showed that the outlet received its 501(c) status in 2012.[7] It claimed that its staff consists of independent and professional writers; the editorial board of the website listed Noam Chomsky, Hanan Ashrawi and Neve Gordon as its contributors.[11] An article written by Palestine Chronicle staff said that it has journalists in the Gaza Strip and in West Bank and that it has a "very small" budget dependent on donations from readers.[12] The Arab Media & Society journal described Palestine Chronicle as an alternative and independent pro-Palestinian outlet that does not align with any political movements in Palestine and advocates for nonviolent resistance against Israel in its reporting.[2]
Lawsuits and accusations
In June 2024, Republican politician Jason Smith sent a letter to the Internal Revenue Service, asking for it to revoke the 501(c) organization status of the Palestine Chronicle. He accused it of showing support for Hamas and not operating for charitable purposes, violating the IRS's rules for 501(c) organizations. In the same month, politician Mike Lawler said on Twitter that one of the Palestine Chronicle's writers, Abdullah al-Jamal, held three Israelis captive in a room of his house while simultaneously writing articles criticizing Israel. He was killed by the IDF during the Nuseirat rescue and massacre on June 8, 2024.[1]CNN later reported that Abdallah was a freelance journalist who reported in the Gaza Strip for the Palestine Chronicle and his family was known to have ties with Hamas. Three Israelis were held captive in his house for 6 months, and his last article in Palestine Chronicle was published one day before the rescue operation.[13]
On July 11, 2024, court records showed that hostages held by al-Jamal, including Almog Meir Jan, had filed a lawsuit against the Palestine Chronicle alleging that it "aided, abetted, and materially supported" al-Jamal and Hamas by allowing him to write articles for the website. The lawsuit showed articles written by him on the website years before the incident, including one where he identified himself as spokesperson for Hamas' Ministry of Labor. The lawsuit also said that al-Jamal wrote articles that praised the October 7 attacks while Jan was still held in captivity.[14] In May 2025, court records showed that a motion to dismiss the lawsuit was denied by Judge Tiffany Cartwright and that the lawsuit provided a "plausible claim" of Palestine Chronicle being affiliated with Hamas’s kidnappings to proceed to trial.[15] In August 2025, court records showed that two rescued Israeli hostages, Shlomi Ziv and Andrey Kozlov, are members of the lawsuit.[16]
In January 2025, the lawsuit was dismissed by judge Cartwright, who ruled the lawsuit provided insufficient evidence that the Palestine Chronicle was aware of al-Jamal being a member of Hamas.[17] Cartwright ruled that al-Jamal's articles critiizing Israel were protected under the First Amendment and that the lawsuit provided no evidence of him inciting or planning violence. She also ruled that the lawsuit showed no evidence of Palestine Chronicle intentionally paying al-Jamal money to carry out terrorism or participate in Hamas operations.[18]
On October 9, 2025, Israeli scholar Anat Alon-Beck said she had filed another lawsuit against the Palestine Chronicle for allegedly providing aid to terror groups, stating the lawsuit was in the affidavit stage at that time.[19] One day later, Ramzy Baroud told TRT World that the lawsuit is an attempt by Zionists to "silence" the outlet for reporting the "truth on Palestine".[20]
Reception
In March 2008, a press release by the Palestine Chronicle said that many people had showed positive reactions to the outlet, with American activist Kathy Kelly, professor James Petras, political analyst Hasan El-Hasan and activist Gilad Atzmon recommending it.[21] In May 2014, Victoria Brittain included Palestine Chronicle in a list of news outlets she thinks successfully reported the "counter-narrative" of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.[22] In December 2022, Baroud said Facebook had sent warnings to ban the account of the Palestine Chronicle and its editors for repeatedly publishing photos of Hamas militants.[23] In February 2024, the Palestine Chronicle claimed that it had become the top result in Google search for "Palestinian Newspaper English" and second result for "Palestine News".[24]
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