Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales personally intervened Sunday to block user edits to the site’s “Gaza genocide” article, citing severe anti-Israel bias and a violation of Wikipedia’s neutrality standards, the New York Post reported.
Wales criticized the article’s opening sentence, which refers to a “Gaza genocide” without attribution, presenting the claim as fact rather than a contested allegation.
“This article fails to meet our high standards and needs immediate attention,” he wrote, referencing Wikipedia’s policies on neutrality and attribution.
Wales called on editors to adopt a balanced approach, suggesting the article begin with: “Multiple governments, NGOs, and legal bodies have described or rejected the characterization of Israel’s actions in Gaza as genocide.”
He emphasized that neutrality is “non-negotiable” and cannot be overridden by editor consensus.
The page remains visible to readers but is locked from editing until November 4, 2025, or until disputes are resolved. A disclaimer notes that the protection “is not an endorsement of the current version.”
The intervention sparked debate among Wikipedia editors. Some praised Wales for restoring neutrality, while others accused him of yielding to political pressure and questioned his ties to Israel. Wales has reportedly visited Israel at least ten times and received the Dan David Prize from Tel Aviv University in 2015.
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