Richard Horton of the Lancet does teshuvah

The once venerable British Medical journal Lancet and its editor, Richard Horton have been taken to task in the past for publishing a letter filled with “concealments, half-truths, and distortions that revealed the biases of its authors and signatories” regarding Israel’s conflict with Gaza.

After the controversial document was published, Lancet editor Richard Horton, was invited to Israel to meet with medical professionals at Rambam hospital.

This is why the anti-Israel forces fear normalization the most of all.

This week Richard Horton made good on his regrets for publishing the biased and controversial article, writing

We have learned lessons from this unfortunate episode. Our collaboration seeks to undo the harm and tarnish of this episode by transforming these experiences to constructive practice.

The May 8 2017 issue of The Lancet features ten articles written by Israel doctors and researchers, on topics as diverse as treating the casualties of the Syrian civil war, digital health innovation, and maternal and child health.

Horton writes:

We have identified several determinants of Israel’s advancement in health, including articulation of a clear vision, national purpose, and long term commitment that seeks to take the health of its citizens seriously; a multi-ethnic population that brings diversity and energy to national progress: a political democracy, which is characterized by robust debate and discussion about the nation’s future; national legislation governing cardinal health-care processes: cultural and religious histories that respect and revere scholarship, learning, research and charitable donation; and expanding economy. with recent but increasing appreciation of the economic, social, and political underpinnings of health and health inequities, a strong base of support from the Diaspora Jewish community ;and a strong desire for acceptance by the international community in key areas, especially science and health.

“The special issue on Israel will not be a one-time project,” Horton said. “It is the beginning of a close partnership.”

For more information on this weeks Lancet see:

Prestigious health journal publishes edition dedicated to health in Israel

3 years after open letter alleged Gaza ‘massacre,’ Lancet eyes Israeli health

After Gaza letter controversy, med journal publishes issue on Israeli healthcare

Lancet accused of editorial misconduct

On March 31  2015, hundreds of physicians  from across the globe submitted a complaint to the Senior Management and Board of Reed Elsevier concerning “egregious editorial misconduct at The Lancet that is unacceptable in general and also gravely violates your own published Editorial Policies”.

The signatories include 5 Nobel laureates, 4 knights and a Lord.

The letter protests "the grossly irresponsible and damaging editorial misuse of The Lancet for political purposes" as well as the "abject failure of the owner/publisher, Reed Elsevier, to enforce appropriate ethical standards of editorship.", citing as examples, the publication of the fraudulent MMR vaccine article, as well as last years "Open Letter to Gaza"

The Lancet, owned by Reed Elsevier, is one of the major general medical journals. It has been misused by its editor-in-chief, Dr Richard Horton, as a vehicle for his own eclectic personal and political agenda, at times characterized by flagrantly irresponsible publications. The worst examples of this are the MMR vaccine scare of 1998 and “An open letter for the people in Gaza” by Manduca et al published on July 22, 2014.

There's been more.

In 1998, it was revealed that scientists received $156,000 from the tobacco industry to write letters disputing the carcinogenicity of second-hand smoke  The Lancet published one of these letters in 1993. Gio Batta Gori was paid $4,000 by the tobacco industry to criticize the EPA report on second hand smoke- his letter was published in the April 10, 1993 Lancet,  with no disclosure of his industry ties.

Other sources reported that there were representatives from the tobacco industry employed by the Lancet. From the Daily Telegraph, May 14 1998

Concerned Academics for editorial Ethics describes how the Lancet

...has become a vehicle for publication of deliberately false material which deepens polarisation between Israelis and Palestinians, and does nothing to promote either global health or the health of those involved in this conflict.

The most recent example of such a diatribe, “An open letter for the people in Gaza” by Manduca et al contains false assertions, unverifiable dishonest ‘facts’, many of them libellous, and glaring omissions while deliberately concealing the grossest possible conflicts of interest of its authors, as acknowledged by The Lancet’s Ombudsman.

Two of the authors (Manduca and Swee Ang) promoted an anti-Semitic video by American white supremacist David Duke. Chalmers, another co-author, has publicly spoken of how “Zionists” have “control in so many different domains.” These blatant anti-Semitic messages and speeches are well documented and readily accessible.

Concerned Academics have asked Reed Elsevier to behave ethically by retracting the Manduca letter, apologizing for its publication and ensuring that any further editorial malpractice at The Lancet is prevented.

Read the full text of the Open Letter to the Lancet here   Read an evidence-based analysis of the nature and impact of Israeli public health policies practices in the West Bank and Gaza here.