The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) accused The New York Times of “an outrageous attempt to sidestep the truth” after the newspaper refused to run an advertisement that described Israel’s actions in Gaza as a “genocide”, Al Jazeera reports.

The proposed advertisement read:

“Tell Congress to stop arming Israel’s genocide in Gaza now! As a Quaker organisation, we work for peace. Join us. Tell the President and Congress to stop the killing and starvation in Gaza.”

The AFSC, a peace and social justice Quaker group, said the newspaper justified its decision by saying there are “differing views on the situation” in Gaza and that it “must ensure that all advertising content complies with these widely applied definitions”.

The group said it has now cancelled the planned advertising with the newspaper.