Language plays a crucial role in the output and framing of human rights and humanitarian organizations. Sometimes overt - often subtle - the words that are used, and how they are deployed reflect conscious decisions designed to shape the way that information is received. The Human Rights Watch piece noting the funeral of Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir Bibas - an Israeli mother seized by Hamas on Oct 7, 2023 with her toddler and baby and taken hostage into Gaza - is a case in point. The significance of their kidnapping is framed as highlighting the "illegality" of hostage taking. Their funeral is described, not as a reminder of Hamas' brutality, but of "why hostage taking is prohibited under international law." Civilian hostages of an armed terror group, their death is described as having happened "while in custody" in Gaza.

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