AP news bias in action

The AP has yet another example of their anti-Israel bias. Take this headline, for instance:

3 Israeli Soldiers Die, 2 Captured in Raid

The Israeli soldiers died. They weren’t, say, killed by terrorists.

Let’s compare that to a headline for the story about Israel dropping a quarter-ton bomb on Mohammed Deif’s hiding place:

Israelis Kill 6 in Attack on Hamas Meeting

Notice the difference: Israelis die, palestinians are killed.

Let’s check the leads. From the attack on the terrorists:

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) – Israeli aircraft blasted a house and killed at least six people in Gaza City early Wednesday during a high-level meeting of Hamas commanders, and Israel said the man who has topped its wanted list for a decade was wounded.

From the story on terrorists attacking Israel:

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) – Hezbollah militants captured two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid Wednesday, and dozens of Israeli troops crossed the frontier with warplanes, tanks and gunboats to hunt for the captives. Three Israeli soldiers also were killed in the raid.

Notice the difference in language. Subtle, but effective: More aggressive terms are used for Israeli actions, passive terms used for terrorist actions. A “cross-border raid” as opposed to an unprovoked military attack. But point out that Israel’s response is “disproportionate” (obviously, the meme of the month) by using the words “warplanes, tanks and gunboats.” Also note that they used the word “killed” n the lead, but not the headline. I guess the palesitinian-approved editors missed that one.

Just another salvo in the years-long media war against Israel. I can only let so many go by.

Update: The updated version is even worse.