AP Media Bias « Yourish.com

02/04/2010

Pre-Snowpocalypse 2 briefs

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Jew Cooties, Lebanon, Religion, Terrorism — Meryl Yourish @ 9:00 am

Frozen peace: See what peace dividends bring to Egypt? The nation’s journalist’s union punished two editors for having contact with Israel. Ew, Jew cooties!

That famous Muslim tolerance for other religions: Egyptian Christians are protesting for the right to build churches as easily as Muslims build mosques. If you want to build a new church in Egypt, first you have to get the permit signed by the president. If you want to build a new mosque, you get a community permit. Tolerance! And the AP boilerplate is just awesome:

Ten percent of Egypt’s 80 million are Copts, who complain of being denied equal citizenship rights. Clashes do occasionally erupt.

Those “clashes”? Riots that torched Christian-owned shops, and murdered Christians. But hey, don’t let the truth get in the way of your whitewash, AP.

Juvenile scorn in the JPost: Tony Badran schools the “realists” at Foreign Affairs about Hizbullah. (Tony’s my hero.)

In the end, the IRA was cornered, unable to force a British withdrawal, and, worse, unable to even protect its community from Loyalist gangs. It was not the Brits but the IRA that initiated talks when its armed struggle had reached a stalemate.

This is hardly where Hizbullah sees itself today, either ideologically or operationally. Instead of finding itself cornered by its local rivals, Hizbullah has used its weapons to extract powerful political concessions, neutralize the unfavorable result of democratic elections and impose its priorities on its adversaries and the Lebanese government.

You tell ‘em, Tony.

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01/23/2010

AP trying to mainstream “teabagger”

Filed under: AP Media Bias, American Scene, Politics — Tags: Media Bias, Tea Party — Meryl Yourish @ 12:04 pm

The Associated Press is proud of its reputation. When you go to the AP website, this sentence starts the second paragraph in the “About us” page:

AP’s mission is to be the essential global news network, providing distinctive news services of the highest quality, reliability and objectivity with reports that are accurate, balanced and informed.

And yet, in today’s news analysis about the Democrats bad week, Charles Babington wrote, and his editor let stand, this insult to the Tea Party movement that has swept America:

Also, it’s not clear that Republicans can tame and harness the volatile “tea bagger” activists. The fiercely independent conservatives helped Brown win in Massachusetts, but they triggered a damaging right-wing split in a special House race in New York last year.

The fact that they put the epithet in quotes indicates that they know full well that “teabagger” is a vulgar term. I never knew it existed before the so-called objective media types (we mean you, Anderson Cooper) were calling Tea Party activists “teabaggers.” It is a deliberate insult. It is not the way an objective news organization should describe the millions of Americans from all walks of life who attended rallies and town halls to protest the expansion of government by this administration and congress.

The AP owes the Tea Party movement a retraction and an apology. And I really think that the people who don’t like the Tea Partiers (see, that wasn’t too hard to call them, was it?) should stop mainstreaming “teabagger.” It’s childish and reflects more poorly on those that use the word rather than on those they are insulting.

Act like an objective news organization, AP. Don’t mainstream “teabagger.”

Update: Looks like the editors replaced “tea bagger” with “tea party.” No correction out there that I can see, just an updated story across the wires.

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01/22/2010

Friday briefs

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel, News Briefs, Terrorism, The One — Tags: Barack Obama, Media Bias — Meryl Yourish @ 9:00 am

I’m not even going to bother pointing out the anti-Israel spin. Really. The whole article blames the failure of the peace process entirely on Israel. It’s not worth parsing.

Compare and contrast, Obama version: Let’s take a look at why Obama thinks the peace process is failing, and who is to blame. Although he did admit that he set the bar far too high. Gee. Wonder if it might have had something to do with the Cairo speech, which enabled the current Palestinian intransigence?

… from Abbas’ perspective, he’s got Hamas looking over his shoulder and, I think, an environment generally within the Arab world that feels impatient with any process. … although the Israelis, I think, after a lot of time showed a willingness to make some modifications in their policies, they still found it very hard to move with any bold gestures.

As has been said: From the Arabs, words. From the Jews, deeds. That’s what’s wrong with this process.

The Obama administration backs off Israel, blames Bush: Hillary Clinton followed up the statement above by pointing out that peace is, ultimately, in the hands of the Palestinians and Israelis. And may we congratulate the Obama administration for its (belated) keen grasp of the obvious. However, if America and the EU exerted pressure on the Arabs for a change—well, no. I’m sorry. What was I thinking? Geez. I think I just had a senior moment in public.

The other Islamic terrorist attack on U.S. soil in 2009: The man who murdered a soldier outside a recruiting station in Little Rock last year says he’s a member of Al Qaeda. Of course the AP downplays it and pulls the “lone nutjob” excuse. But how many soldiers have to die in jihadi attacks on American soil before we realize we have a problem?

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01/19/2010

Rachel’s tomb and the protection of Jewish holy sites

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel, Israeli Double Standard Time — Tags: Israel — Soccerdad @ 10:00 am

Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts (Protocol I), 8 June 1977.
Part IV : Civilian population #Section I — General protection against effects of hostilities #Chapter III — Civilian objects
Article 53 — Protection of cultural objects and of places of worship
Without prejudice to the provisions of the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of 14 May 1954, and of other relevant international instruments, it is prohibited:

(a) to commit any acts of hostility directed against the historic monuments, works of art or places of worship which constitute the cultural or spiritual heritage of peoples;

(b) to use such objects in support of the military effort;

(c) to make such objects the object of reprisals.

If, as Dickens wrote, “The law is a ass …” then, pardon the crudity, international law is donkey crap. Once upon a time, Rachel’s Tomb – where, according to tradition, the Matriarch, Rachel is buried in Bethlehem – was, as depicted in the mural below, located in an open area.

Now, however, it is surrounded by Israel’s security fence. The famous dome is no longer visible to approaching whorshippers.

Why all of the fortifications? During Arafat’s “Aqsa intifada,” two Israeli soldiers, Shahar Vekret and Danny Darai were killed by snipers while guarding the sacred shrine.

Even now, with the presence of the security fence to protect Rachel’s tomb, there’s an Arab apartment building with a clear view (or should I write “shot”) of the entrance to the tomb. So Israel placed camoflauge netting in front of the building to obscure the view.

I don’t recall any UN organization raising a hue and cry over this desecration of a Jewish holy site. Former Sen. George Mitchell in an anodyne statement in his famous report expressed his regret that violence occurred at Rachel’s Tomb and other religious place, but he failed to condemn the deliberate targeting of a Jewish holy site by the Palestinians.

Why did Israel station soldiers at Rachel’s tomb? Because Israel recalled what happened to Joseph’s tomb, just a few years earlier. Charles Krauthammer wrote at the time:

One occurred in Nablus, an Arab town under P.L.O. control. There is in Nablus a Jewish religious site, Joseph’s Tomb. Under the P.L.O.-Israeli peace accords, it remained a tiny enclave peopled by devout Jews and, for protection, a few Israeli soldiers. On Sept. 26, it was attacked by a Palestinian mob throwing firebombs. Six Israelis were killed. Many prayer books were burned.

This is the Middle Eastern equivalent of a mob of whites torching a black church, killing parishioners and burning its holy objects. Yet, while the tunnel received enormous coverage complete with diagrams, the desecration at Joseph’s Tomb, if reported at all, merited at most a few sentences. And a similar Palestinian attempt to firebomb Judaism’s third holiest shrine, Rachel’s Tomb in Bethlehem, received in the major American press no mention at all, save one in the New York Times–in a picture caption on page 12!

One can debate the merits of the Jerusalem tunnel. But whatever one’s view, it is hard to have a debate when one cannot get the facts straight. And one cannot get the facts straight because of the double standard in Middle East coverage that impugns Israel’s every move and patronizes Palestinians with endless free passes.

International law that is supposed to serve all the world, seems to be a tool in the hands of those who would erase the Jewish identity from the world.

Has any international body condemned the recent Iraqi efforts to purge Ezekiel’s tomb of any mention of his Jewishness?

Recently “Ur,” a local Iraqi news agency, reported that a huge mosque will be built on top of the grave by Iraq’s Antiquities and Heritage Authority, while Hebrew inscriptions and ornaments are being removed from the site, all as part of renovations.

Prof. Shmuel Moreh of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, winner of the 1999 Israel Prize in Middle Eastern studies and chairman of the Association of Jewish Academics from Iraq, speaking to The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday, confirmed the report.

“I first heard the news of tomb desecration from a friend of mine who is a German scholar. After visiting the site he called me and said that some Hebrew inscriptions on the grave were covered by plaster and that a mosque is planned to be built on top of the tomb. He told me that he found the changes at the tomb disturbing and warned me that I’d better act quickly, before any irreversible damage will be inflicted,” Moreh said.

“I had contacted Mr. Shelomo Alfassa, US director of Justice for Jews from Arab Countries, and told him about this situation. Then I saw the report from the Ur news agency, mentioning the decision of the Antiquities and Heritage Authority to build a mosque and to erase the Hebrew inscriptions and ornaments,” Moreh said.

Ynet adds:

An application has also been made to the UNESCO headquarters, which is responsible for maintaining the religious character of holy sites.

Good luck with that. And don’t expect this desecration to get reported much.

Shortly after the American invasion of Iraq in 2003, the looting of Iraq’s museums was the source of much outrage. Of course then, the target was obvious: President Bush’s ill considered war to remove Saddam Hussein from power. All the usual international suspects used the opportunity to berate the President for one more breach of their sensitivities. But those same sensitivities don’t seem operative when it’s Jewish history that’s being erased.

Crossposted on Soccer Dad.

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01/11/2010

The double standard on Sudanese refugees

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israeli Double Standard Time — Tags: Egypt, Israel, Sudan — Meryl Yourish @ 6:30 pm

So that item in the AP that kept changing its text on the Egyptian border police murdering African migrants trying to sneak into Israel? Well, they changed it again in the latest iteration. But of course, there was the implicit blaming of Israel, because it must somehow be because Israel wanted Egypt to tighten border patrols that is causing the Egyptians to shoot African migrants in the back.

Israel requested Egypt tighten its border patrols. Amnesty International says Egyptian security forces have killed 39 people, mostly Sudanese and Eritreans, trying to cross into Israel between 2008 to mid-2009. More updated figures were not immediately available. Both countries have been criticized by human rights groups for their approach to the problem.

You gotta love the part in bold. Israel has been criticized for not accepting more African migrants, or for keeping them imprisoned, but it’s just the same as, say, Egyptian border guards murdering 39 innocent men, women, and children over an 18-month period.

Did I remember to mention that they frequently shoot these people in the back?

According to the soldier, female IDF troops operating night vision devices identified several refugees approaching the border in an attempt to infiltrate Israel and alerted other soldiers who arrived after a few minutes in an army jeep.

However, Egyptian troops who also discovered the refugees, fired upon them, immediately killing two and wounding a third. A fourth refugee ran towards the fence and an IDF soldier stretched out his hands, trying to help him cross.

At that point, the soldier recalled, two Egyptian soldiers arrived and started pulling at the refugee’s legs.

I remind you that there is no UN resolution condemning Egypt for murdering African refugees as they try to flee to a better life. But there are dozens and dozens of resolutions concerning the Palestinians. What time is it, folks? Of course, it’s Israeli Double Standard Time. But don’t worry, it only occurs on days that end with a “y”.

By the way, the latest iteration has the same text, but a new headline:

Israel to build two massive fences on Egyptian border to keep out migrants, militants

Because this one

Israel to build 2 fences on porous Egyptian border

just wasn’t slanted enough against Israel.

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Monday snarks

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Gaza, Israel — Meryl Yourish @ 9:00 am

The Israeli rocket prevention program: Got three “militants” as they were preparing to fire rockets into Israel. One hit, three dead terrorists, no real notice by the AP, since they can’t even pretend these were Palestinian farmers trying to earn a living. Caught with their own petards, you might say. Oh, the AP did have this to say in their latest update on Iron Dome (after writing that it will take years to develop, and uh, duh): “There has been a recent flare-up of rocket fire from Gaza.” Uh-huh.

Good fences make good neighbors: The Egyptian fence around Gaza could be the endgame for Hamas. And Hamas knows it. They are shaking in their sandals about Egypt’s fence, which will enable Egypt to control what goes in and out of Gaza, and that includes bombs and bullets. Here’s the thing about the Egyptian fence: Egypt doesn’t give a damn about Hamas smuggling as long as Hamas turns those bombs and bullets on Israel. But when Hamas starts talking about turning on Egypt, that’s when the Egyptian regime protects its own. Last year Hamas showed Egypt that it has a vulnerable border, when Hamas engineered blowing up the wall and allowing thousands of Gazans (and many terrorists, of course) into Egypt. Here’s a tip for Hamas: You never, ever show an authoritarian regime that it has a weakness. You rarely live to tell the tale. And I couldn’t be happier for you.

Another fence for the anti-Israel left to protest: Netanyahu is going to build a fence along the currently open border with Egypt. It’s mostly to stop the illegal immigration of Africans. And just to show you how egregious the AP spin can be, yesterday when I read this article, it contained this line:

At least 17 migrants have been killed by Egyptian police since May.

Now it says:

Israel requested Egypt tighten its border patrols and since then many African migrants have been shot and killed by Egyptian police trying to sneak through.

Quite a difference, isn’t it? Imagine if 17 immigrants had been killed by Israeli border police. How many UN resolutions condemning Israel would there be by now?

The unbiased media at work.

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01/07/2010

The fabled Muslim religious tolerance strikes again

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Media Bias, Religion — Tags: Islam, Religion — Meryl Yourish @ 9:00 am

A 12-year-old Muslim girl was abducted and raped by a Coptic Christian Egyptian in November. The attacker was arrested. But the rule of law wasn’t enough. First, Muslims murdered Christian shoppers.

Attackers in a car raked a crowd of shoppers in a south Egypt town with gunfire, killing a policemen and six Coptic Christians on the eve of their Christmas celebrations, a security official said on Thursday.

Then they rioted, excuse me, “protested”, in AFP-speak:

In November, hundreds of Muslim protesters torched Christian-owned shops in the town of Farshut, near Nagaa Hammadi, and attacked a police station where they believed the suspected rapist was being held.

Here in America, we call people who burn shops “rioters.” At least the AP used the right term:

He said Muslim residents of Nag Hamadi and neighboring villages rioted for five days in November and torched and damaged Christian properties in the area after the rape.

But that was long after the AP, in the fourth paragraph, explained how there is generally peace between Muslims (who riot, murder, forcibly convert Copts, and burn Christian shops) and the Copts, the oldest Christian sect in Egypt:

Christians, mostly Coptics, account for about 10 percent of Egypt’s predominantly Muslim population. They generally live in peace with the Muslim majority although clashes and tensions in the south do occur, mostly over land or church construction disputes. In recent years, the clashes have begun seeping into the capital.

That’s the fourth paragraph. Your local paper’s world news section generally prints only the first three to five paragraphs of wire stories, and of course, the wire services know this. Here are paragraphs nine, ten, and eleven:

As Islamic conservatism gains ground, Christians have increasingly complained about discrimination by the Muslim majority.

Coptic Christians are limited in where they can build churches and must obtain government approval before expanding existing facilities. The government insists Christians enjoy the same rights as Muslims.

Vendetta killing is also common among southern Egyptians, and is usually over land or family disputes.

Every time the AP writer discusses anti-Christian actions by Egyptian Muslims, he feels compelled to explain that it may not just be religious bigotry. And yet, Muslims keep on killing Christians in Egypt. And even the AP acknowledges that Egypt refuses to let Copts build churches freely at the same time it insists that Christians are not discriminated against.

It’s funny how this topic never seems to come up when Obama talks about Muslims. Go figure.

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01/03/2010

A pro-Israel AP spin

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Gaza, Israel, Jews — Tags: AP Media Bias, Gaza, Israel — Meryl Yourish @ 11:00 am

Since I have written probably hundreds of posts about the anti-Israel AP spin of articles reporting on events in Israel, here’s one that’s a reverse spin: One that actually, accurately reflects the symbolism of the Neturei Karta nutjobs spending Shabbat in Gaza. (And may I repeat: Ew.)

The first AP headline (and gee, I love the name of that newspaper):

Ultra-Orthodox Jews make rare visit to Gaza

The lead:

A small group of ultra-Orthodox Jews were preparing Friday to celebrate the Jewish Sabbath in Gaza, in an unlikely show of support for Palestinians in the Hamas-run coastal territory.

Note that there is nothing to indicate the fact that the NK are about as relevant to Judaism as your local “homeless” guy begging for food on the town’s busiest street corner is homeless. You don’t find that out until the last two paragraphs.

Neturei Karta, Aramaic for “Guardians of the City,” was founded seven decades ago in Jerusalem by Jews who opposed the drive to establish the state of Israel, believing only the Messiah could do that.

Considered marginal even among ultra-Orthodox Jews, the group’s size is estimated at between a few hundred to a few thousand people.

Perhaps a more knowledgeable reader could explain to me why they use Aramaic instead of Hebrew for their name. Yet another way to disassociate themselves from mainstream Judaism?

Second headline and lead:

Members of fringe Jewish sect spend weekend in Gaza to show support for Palestinians
Several members of an anti-Zionist Jewish sect have spent the Jewish Sabbath in Gaza with some of Israel’s most bitter enemies, the militant Islamic group Hamas.

Better. Even better, the truth about the NK nuts:

Neturei Karta traditionally supports Israel’s enemies – most notably Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whom members hugged at a Holocaust denial conference in 2006.

They are estimated to have up to a few thousand followers and are mostly shunned by mainstream Judaism.

The last, and best, update:

Radical Jewish sect spends Sabbath in Gaza
Several members of an anti-Zionist Jewish sect have spent the Jewish Sabbath in Gaza with some of Israel’s most bitter enemies, the militant Islamic group Hamas.

So, credit where credit is due, and kudos to the AP.

It’s about damned time they told the truth about Israel and Jews.

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12/26/2009

Unspinning the anti-Israel spin

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel, Terrorism — Meryl Yourish @ 2:21 pm

If you read only the wire services, you wouldn’t understand exactly why the IDF killed three terrorists in the West Bank early this morning. Allow me to show you the depths to which the AP falls to justify the murderers, cover up terror attacks, and remove the blame from Mahmoud Abbas, Fatah, and the PA—and then how they blame the IDF for killing Palestinians and make it seem like the Palestinians were either blameless or just about to surrender before the IDF blew them away.

First, the AP report on the terror attack yesterday. The headline: “Gunmen kill Israeli in West Bank shooting attack.” Note that “Palestinian” does not appear in the headline at all. Neither do the words “Islamic Jihad” or “Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade,” both of whom claimed the terror attack that murdered a 45-year-old rabbi and father of seven. Neither group is “little-known.” Both are well-known, and Al-Aqsa is a part of Fatah. The fiction maintained by the media is that it is an “offshoot.” Note also that the AP report does not name the murder victim. The report also does not name the group that claimed the attack, calling it only “A Palestinian group” or “A little-known Palestinian militant group identifying itself as a faction of President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah movement.”

Now, let’s look at the Israeli press and see what information we can glean that the AP is not providing. First, the name of the victim, Meir Avshalom, 45. Next, Ha’aretz gives us the details of his life—seven children, one of whom was estranged from him. Okay, that’s not important enough for the AP to pass along on the wire services, granted, but this is:

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades and the Islamic Jihad have both claimed responsibility for the attack.

This information is from yesterday’s article. Today, we find out that the three were well-known terrorists, one of whom, Anan Sabah, was included in the amnesty agreement that the PA negotiated with Israel. The agreement, you may remember, required that the terrorists receiving amnesty would cease terrorism against Israel. Another one, Raed a-Sarkaji, served seven years in prison for the murder of another Israeli. This next bit of information is important:

A rifle and two pistols were found on Salah’s body, and a large amount of weapons were found in the cache he was holed up in.

Today’s AP article has its own spin on the above:

The forces surrounded the homes of the three. Lerner, the army major, said all three turned down a chance to surrender. However, relatives of Abu Sharah and Suragji said they were killed without warning. Lerner confirmed that none of the wanted men returned fire, including Subeh, who had two pistols and two assault rifles on him.

There is no mention of the weapons cache. But there’s a lot of spinning. The AP makes it look like the IDF simply started shooting for no reason. They see no significance in the fact that everyone but the wanted terrorist evacuated the home, and he was found with weapons and ammunition on him, and hiding in a small space where he could shoot from a protected area. Then there’s the “Allahu Akbar” part—you know, the words that every terrorist seems to utter when he is about to attempt murder? And still, the AP wants to know why the soldiers opened fire. Gee. Let’s think.

In the third raid, troops ordered everyone to come out of the Subeh home, said Subeh’s brother, Jamal. The family evacuated, but Anan Subeh stayed behind.

Lerner said Subeh was hiding in a small crawl space in his home when he was killed. He said soldiers heard him shout “Allahu Akbar,” Arabic for God is great.

Asked why soldiers opened fire, Lerner said troops “had to operate under the assumption that they (the suspects) are dangerous.”

The suspects were dangerous.

Now let’s look at the usual mounting anti-Israel spin as the story is updated. First headline:

Israel kills 3 in West Bank raids

Updated headline:

Israel kills 6 Palestinians

Note that there is no context in either headline. Not even the word “militant.”

Lead one:

Israeli soldiers stormed homes in the West Bank on Saturday, killing three Palestinians allegedly involved in the fatal shooting of an Israeli and testing an uneasy security arrangement with Palestinian authorities.

Lead two:

Israeli troops blasted their way into the homes of three wanted Palestinians on Saturday, killing each in a hail of bullets and straining an uneasy security arrangement with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

The bolded words speak for themselves. Now to compare and contrast, the lead from the article about Meir Avshalom:

Gunmen killed an Israeli man in a shooting attack in the West Bank on Thursday as local attention was focused on Christmas celebrations in nearby Bethlehem.

A Palestinian group took responsibility for the killing.

Big difference, isn’t there? Welcome to the world of the anti-Israel media. Thanks to them, I’ll never run out of post fodder.

Update: And the latest AP updated headline?

Israel kills 6 Palestinians in surge of violence

Palestinians, not “militants.” Surge, not even the pathetic “cycle of” violence. Just a surge in violence, implying that Israel decided to go shoot a bunch of Palestinians for no reason. The lead, including the colorful “hail of bullets,” remains.

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12/14/2009

The AP spin: Hamas calls for destruction of Israel are “suggestions”

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Hamas, Israel — Tags: AP Media Bias, Hamas, Israel — Meryl Yourish @ 4:00 pm

Really, you just can’t make this stuff up. Buried deep inside the whitewashed AP version of Hamas’ anniversary festivities in Gaza is this nugged of wisdom from the AP, which purports to show the moderation of the terrorist group even as they declare their devotion to the complete elimination of Israel:

In recent months, Hamas’ leader, Khaled Mashaal, has tried to reach out to the West with conciliatory statements, saying his group supports the idea of a Palestinian state in Gaza, the West Bank and east Jerusalem. However, Mashaal hasn’t said if he would consider that the final arrangement.

Haniyeh suggested Monday that Hamas hasn’t dropped its objective of destroying Israel.

“This movement, with the help of the militant factions liberated the Gaza Strip, and we say, brothers and sisters, we will not be satisfied with Gaza,” Haniyeh told the crowd. “Hamas looks toward the whole of Palestine, the liberation of the strip is just a step to liberating all of Palestine,” meaning Israel as well as the West Bank and Gaza.

How is that a suggestion? How do the AP editors justify the pretense of the middle paragraph, that Haniyeh “suggested” that Hamas might still be thinking about destroying Israel? That isn’t a suggestion. It’s a flat-out declaration of purpose.

This is what is held up as the heights of journalism that blogging should reach? Puh-leeze.

And here’s the other part of the outrage that gets pretty much ignored: The Talibanization of Gaza is nearly complete.

Women stood in a separate section, many of them wearing face veils and green baseball hats over headscarves. Some children were dressed in combat fatigues and wore green headbands.

Yeah, let’s hear all about how Israel is a discriminatory state. I’m thinking not.

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11/19/2009

The obstacles to peace

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Hamas, Terrorism — Meryl Yourish @ 7:00 am

Settlements, the conventional wisdom says, are the true obstacles to peace in the Middle East. Not Palestinian intransigence. Not the fact that the Palestinians have been split into two groups—Hamas and the Palestinian Authority—for years. Not the fact that if the Palestinians really wanted to run their own lives, they could easily negotiate some kind of agreement with Israel. But first they’d have to actually sit down and negotiate, something they have refused to do for some time now. But none of this, the world exclaims, is the problem. The problem is settlements.

Not this.

A Gaza charity headed by the interior minister of the terrorist Hamas group on Wednesday offered $1.4 million to any Arab citizen of Israel who abducts a soldier.

The charity is not just Hamas-linked, as the AP headline states. It is part of Hamas, the current governing body of the Gaza Strip.

The Waad group from Gaza offered the bounty for Israeli soldiers in an e-mail sent to Palestinian media. The organization, which supports Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, is headed by Hamas’ Interior Minister Fathi Hamad. The minister did not return messages seeking comment.

The bounty is being offered in the typical Palestinian perversion of Israeli action.

Waad’s director, Usama Kahlout, said the bounty was in response to an Israeli group’s offer to pay Gaza residents for information on the whereabouts of Sgt. Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier captured more than three years ago by Hamas-allied terrorists.

Got that? An Israeli group is trying to rescue Israeli soldiers by offering rewards for information that might help get them released. The Hamas group responds by offering a reward for more kidnapped Israeli soldiers. Their actions are so despicable that words simply fail after a while. And so is the AP’s comparison:

Israel is holding some 7,500 Palestinian prisoners. Schalit is the only Israeli held by Hamas, while four Israelis who disappeared in Lebanon in the 1980s remain unaccounted for.

Why, exactly, are there 7,500 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails? Hm. Let’s think. It may have something to do with breaking the law. Why is there an Israeli soldier in Gaza? Because he was kidnapped in a raid from Gaza into Israel that killed and wounded other Israeli soldiers. But sure, all that really counts is numbers, not context. Obviously, Israel disproportionately imprisons Palestinians.

This is, remember, the group that Jimmy Carter and others insist will moderate its terrorism and settle down in a state next to Israel.

Sure. Because that’s just what groups that want to live peacefully with their neighbors do—offer rewards to kidnappers.

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11/17/2009

Tuesday SNB

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Iran, Israel — Meryl Yourish @ 7:00 am

Israeli Double Standard Time: The AP kept using qualifiers like “Israel says” when covering the 500 tons of weapons discovered on a ship headed for Hezbullah. But there’s no problem whatsoever quoting Iranian newspapers as truthful sources when it comes to discussing the whereabouts of a missing Iranian general. He’s in Israel, of course, being held in “Zionist prison.” Go read both the articles, and tell me which nation the AP thinks is more trustworthy.

Toldja so: No way the U.S. goes along with the Palestinians going to unilaterally declaring a state. On the other hand, how the hell is it going to be contiguous when Israel lies between the West Bank and Gaza?

This makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside: The IAEA, the one that couldn’t find the secret Iranian nuclear enrichment plant, says that it’s all set to be up and running within a year or so. Great news! Another plant Iran can use to cheat and retreat and build a nuclear bomb, and what’s the UN doing about it? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Warm and fuzzy, part 2: Gee. The IAEA seems to have noticed that Syria is, indeed, looking to make a nuke, too. Go figure. Iran’s their patron, they hate Israel—who knew?

Bow wow wow: You know, we have such an amateur as president, he never got the memo that the U.S. President bends the knee only to God. Seriously, has any other American president been so obsequious? But hey. He’s the president of the world, right? Uh, except that even the Europeans are losing their affection for The One. So soon?

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11/16/2009

The latest Palestinian obfuscation: Unilateralism

Filed under: AP Media Bias — Meryl Yourish @ 7:00 am

Unilateralism is bad when Israel practices it. Go read back a few years to hear the left shrieking about Ariel Sharon withdrawing from Gaza unilaterally, instead of working with the PA (or at least, pretending to work with them so they could get the credit for it). Hamas would claim victory, everyone said. Yes, they were right, but the point is—unilateralism is bad.

It was bad when George Bush the elder wanted to invade Iraq. He had to build a multinational force, including using pretend-Saudi pilots, in order for the war to get the go-ahead.

It was bad when George W. Bush wanted to track down the al Qaeda murderers and take them out. Didn’t matter if he was heading for Afghanistan or Iraq, the world shrieked about unilateralism and said that Cowboy George should not go it alone, but should get the world on his side first.

Now the Palestinians are threatening to unilaterally declare a Palestinian state. (They already did in 1988, and you can see how far that declaration got them.) But I hear no chorus of pundits and heads of state insisting that unilateral actions are the wrong way to go. In fact, the silence is deafening. But that’s not really the issue. The issue is misdirection. Why are the Palestinians suddenly threatening to unilaterally declare a Palestinian state? Because they refuse to come back to the negotiating table with Israel. And since the Obama administration has made it clear that it will no longer accept the excuse of settlement building as a reason not to negotiate, the Palestinians have come up with a little bit of misdirection that the media and Israel’s enemies can latch onto: Going to the UN to declare a state.

Oh, they don’t really believe it can happen. But that’s not the point. The point is, they’re hoping to get the world to back them on this, and to blame Israel for the lack of progress in negotiations. Will it work? Well. So far, everything else has. So let’s see how well this has worked so far today. We have three stories, three headlines, via the AP. Let’s take a look. First:

Palestinians to seek UN endorsement of statehood
Nov 15, 11:27 AM (ET)

The update:

Frustrated Palestinians to appeal to UN for state
Nov 15, 2:52 PM (ET)

And the last updated story last night:

Netanyahu Threatens to Retaliate if Palestinians Declare Statehood
Updated: Sunday, 15 Nov 2009, 10:46 PM EST

Yep. It’s working.

Comments (3)

10/25/2009

The unbiased media, part the next

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel, Religion — Meryl Yourish @ 10:56 am

Say, take a look at this headline and tell me what kind of images it conjures up:

Israeli police storm Jerusalem’s holiest site

Holy crap! Israeli police stormed the Temple Mount? Really? Let’s see what
the Israeli media have to say. First, Ynet:

Jerusalem: Temple Mount riots resume
Nine police officers were lightly injured Sunday stones and Molotov cocktails hurled at forces stationed at the Temple Mount as part of the high state of alert in the area. A female Australian reporter was lightly injured by stones in the Old City.

Forces patrolling the area also noticed oil poured on the floor, apparently in order to cause the officers to slip and make their activity in the area more difficult.

A police force entered the Temple Mount compound in order to catch the stone throwers, using shock grenades. More than 18 people were arrested on the Mount and in its surroundings, including senior Fatah member Khatem Abdel Kader, who is charge of the Jerusalem portfolio in the Palestinian organization.

JPost:

9 cops, reporter lightly hurt in J’lem
Nine police officers and a foreign reporter were lightly hurt Sunday in clashes between security forces and Arab rioters in the capital.

Police were forced to storm the Temple Mount twice during the the day of fierce rioting, and were met by a hail of rocks and a firebomb.

And Ha’aretz, the Israeli paper most quoted by the New York Times:

Israel Police battle Arab rioters on Temple Mount; PA official arrested
Stone-throwing Arab youths wounded three policemen on the Temple Mount on Sunday as Jerusalem police, firing water cannons and stun grenades, raided the holy site in a bid to quell repeated bouts of rioting. At least 18 Palestinians were wounded over the course of the day.

Police stormed the compound twice; the first time was in response to Arab youths who pelted officers with rocks and poured oil on them.

Later Sunday morning, about 100 Arab youths renewed rioting at the Temple Mount, after which Border Police and regular policemen raided the site again, using stun grenades to disperse the rioters.

In other words, Arabs rioted on the Temple Mount and were throwing stones below at Jews, a life-threatening action. Israeli police moved in to stop the stone-throwing and rioting. And how does the AP portray this?

Israeli forces stormed Jerusalem’s holiest shrine Sunday, firing stun grenades to disperse hundreds of stone-throwing Palestinian protesters in a fresh eruption of violence at the most volatile spot in the country.

A wall of Israeli riot police behind plexiglass shields closed in on the crowd, sending many protesters – overwhelmingly young men – running for cover into the black-domed Al-Aqsa mosque. The mosque is one part of the compound known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary.

After several rounds of clashes, dozens of protesters were still holed up inside the mosque at midafternoon, occasionally opening shuttered doors to throw objects at police. The Israeli forces did not enter the building and police said they had no plans to do so. There were no serious injuries.

You know what you didn’t see in the AP? Any stories leading up to the events that happened today. It was all over the Israeli press that Arabs were calling for rioting at the Temple Mount again. But the AP puts none of these facts into its article.

The Jerusalem Police will bolster deployment throughout the Old City, east Jerusalem and Temple Mount compound Sunday, following recent calls by both Arab and Jewish elements to arrive at the compound on Sunday.

The Islamic Movement announced it will make buses available for worshipers who wish to arrive at the mosque Sunday.

The movement’s spokesman Zahy Nujeidat said the flyer calling Arabs to protect the area was issued “in response to those who try and desecrate al-Aqsa.”

Instead, the AP puts this as the fourth paragraph:

Israel’s national police chief, David Cohen, accused a small group of Muslim extremists of trying to foment violence – echoing a charge made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu two weeks ago.

Note the attempt to blame it on Netanyahu and make it seem like a false accusation, when it is absolutely true. Also notice that the lead calls them Palestinian “protesters,” when, in fact, they are rioters. What are they protesting? Are there signs? Is there a cause? No. They are responding to the lies that Jews are going to “attack” al-Aqsa. It is incitement—not the “charge” of incitement. But those facts would affect the narrative, and so, they don’t wind up in the story.

Typical. That’s why I have an entire category titled “AP Media Bias.”

Comments (4)

10/21/2009

My latest letter to AP

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel — Meryl Yourish @ 9:30 am

Since I was so crabby from the flu yesterday, I decided to use my powers for good instead of evil. No nasty email to anyone at work. Just to the biased writers and editors at the AP.

Subject: Richard Goldstone’s faith and its effect on the Goldstone Report

To the editor,

For some weeks now, when the AP reports on the Goldstone Commission’s report, it uses something along these lines:

Israel did not cooperate with the probe, and angry Israeli leaders have condemned its findings. Still, Goldstone’s record as a war crimes prosecutor in the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, as well as his Jewish faith and attachment to Israel have made it hard for Israel to refute his report.

Source: http://apnews.myway.com/article/20091020/D9BERP1G0.html

Is it the AP’s policy that because Richard Goldstone is Jewish, his report must be accurate? This is a logical fallacy. The report must be accurate because it is accurate, not because its author is Jewish and has ties to Israel. In point of fact, many people have found many inaccuracies in the Goldstone report, none of which have been reported by the AP.

http://www.goldstonereport.org/

http://www.globallawforum.org/ViewPublication.aspx?ArticleId=104

http://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/search/label/Goldstone%20Report

Any of those three links can give you example after example of errors in the Goldstone report. None of them uses Goldstone’s Jewishness as a barometer of the accuracy of his report. All of them refute the report by example, showing that it relied on Hamas terrorists as “eyewitnesses,” or ignored evidence that would invalidate a claim against Israel.

If what you are really trying to say is that Israel’s proponents can’t call Goldstone biased against Israel because he’s Jewish and says he’s a Zionist, then please say so. But that, too, will be wrong. Because there are plenty of Jews who are biased against Israel. Noam Chomsky comes immediately to mind.

Please stop using this logical fallacy in your boilerplate about the Goldstone report. One can absolutely refute the accuracy of the report even though Richard Goldstone is Jewish and has ties to Israel. Those two things have nothing to do with the facts of the report.

Comments (1)

10/05/2009

Why did Israel jail the pregnant woman?

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel, Israel Derangement Syndrome, Israeli Double Standard Time — Tags: Gilad Shalit — Soccerdad @ 9:00 am

The media likes to boast that they are the “first rough draft of history.” Part of that claim is that they are disinterested parties just reporting the facts as they are. Rafael Broch of Just Journalism had an excellent op-ed in Ha’aretz demonstrating the falseness of that claim.

But the media is more active than we may realize, and journalists profoundly affect what we understand about international law. One way is through the language that journalists popularise in their reports and broadcasts.

The first reference to war crimes by the British press in relation to the Gaza conflict came less than 48 hours into Israel’s operation. It was a quotation from a Hezbollah militant in Lebanon, claiming the assault was a “war crime and represents genocide”.

What is most interesting is not the readiness of the journalist to include war crimes allegations in his report so soon, but that the journalist saw it fit to quote the legal judgement of an avowed enemy. Somewhere in the mind of the journalist is the logic that these soundbytes convey drama and sell papers.

And so every Israeli self-defense is subject to a filter, which suggests that each such action might well be a violation worthy of condemnation if not punishment.

Consider the other side of the coin. On Friday Israel released twenty female security prisoners in exhange for a video of captured soldier, Gilad Schalit. Schalit has been held for three years and not allowed any visits by the Red Cross. How did the Associated Press orient its story? On the plight of the prisoners!

Women make up only a tiny minority of more than 7,000 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, but they often pay a high personal price for what has largely been a supporting role in the Palestinian uprising.

Some have raised babies behind bars, and others have watched their families torn apart in their absence.

Now notice in these opening paragraphs there’s nothing about what the women may have done to deserve incarceration. It’s as if the Israelis arbitrarily picked the women off the street.

Fatima Ziq, 41, was pregnant when she was arrested in May 2007 as an alleged accomplice in a foiled suicide bombing. She returns to Gaza City with a toddler — her ninth child — who has known only prison life.

Zhour Hamdan, 45, was a married mother of eight when she was picked up in 2003, also as an accomplice in an aborted bombing. Her husband has remarried, and her children were forced to fend for themselves.

“Our mother was the heart of our family,” said one of her daughters, Neveen, 22. “When she was arrested, our entire life changed.”

“Alleged accomplice?” Was she not tried and convicted? And the only reason she’s being released is because the action she abetted was unsuccessful. Does the article ask what kind of society impels pregnant women to be actively involved in the destruction of innocents?

As far as Zhour Hamdan, was she abandoned by husband because of her absence or on account of her age? If her husband abandoned their children too, what does that say about her husband?

But if glossing over the crimes the women were involved in wasn’t bad enough, the AP goes further:

The release of prisoners is an emotional issue for both sides.

Palestinians view the prisoners as heroes fighting Israeli occupation at great personal cost, and virtually every Palestinian family has current or former detainees in its midst.

In contrast, many Israelis see the inmates as terrorists.

Israelis “see” these inmates as terrorists? Please. They are, by definition, terrorists. They attempted to kill civilians. Their success in doing so isn’t really relevant to what they are. It’s not a subjective judgment. That Palestinian society views them as heroes, says something about the society and about the apologists who glorify the terrorism.

The Israeli public is divided over whether to release large numbers of prisoners in exchange for Israeli captives. Some argue that such releases only drive up the cost of future exchanges and increase the dangers of future attacks.

“Some argue?” Well it’s more than an argument. It’s documented that a portion of those terrorists who are released early return to terrorism and innocents again pay the price.

As Meryl noted, there have been other articles of this ilk about Gilad Schalit or more generally.

The media may claim that they report the news, but what they report is a narrative, shaped by ideology. It has the effect of shaping opinion to fit the views of “journalists” and advocating for their preferred causes. It is generally not what we would consider “news.”

Crossposted on Soccer Dad.

Comments (14)

10/01/2009

Anatomy of an anti-Israel hit piece

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel — Meryl Yourish @ 6:10 pm

The headline of an AP article earlier today:

Israel prepares for battle over war crimes claims

The update this afternoon:

Israel trying to dodge overseas prosecution

The original lead:

Oct 1, 7:55 AM (ET)
By AMY TEIBEL
JERUSALEM (AP) – The Israeli government and military have retained high-powered international lawyers and set up a joint task force to fend off attempts by Palestinians and their supporters to try Israeli officials on war crimes charges abroad.

For nearly a decade, activists have turned to courts outside Israel in an effort to try Israeli political and military officials outside the jurisdiction of their own courts. While none of the attempts has succeeded, they could intensify further after a U.N. report accusing the Israeli military of committing war crimes during its devastating offensive in the Gaza Strip in December and January.

In a sign of what could lie ahead, British activists this week attempted to have Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak arrested on war crimes charges for his role in the Gaza war. A court rejected the request.

Concerned that government officials and military officers traveling abroad could face war crimes charges, an interministerial team joined by legal experts from the military is in place to protect officials and officers involved in Israeli military operations, a government official said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter with the media.

The U.N. report accused Israel of using excessive force and endangering civilians. Some 1,400 Palestinians were killed in the offensive, most of them civilians, according to Palestinian officials and human rights groups. Thirteen Israelis were also killed. The report also said Palestinian militants had committed war crimes by targeting civilians.

The update:

Oct 1, 4:10 PM (ET)
By AMY TEIBEL and PAISLEY DODDS
JERUSALEM (AP) – Stung by a damning U.N. report alleging war crimes in Gaza, Israel is taking extraordinary steps to fend off potential international prosecution of its political and military leaders, hiring high-powered attorneys, lobbying Western governments and launching a public relations blitz.

Israel has dismissed the U.N. investigation into its winter offensive in the Gaza strip as biased, but its latest moves show it is clearly concerned.

The U.N. report appears to have energized pro-Palestinian groups that have hoped for years to bring Israelis before courts in countries that recognize the concept of “universal jurisdiction” – trying people for crimes unrelated to their own territory or nationals.

Most recently, British activists attempted this week to have Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak arrested during a trip to Britain for war crimes connected to his role in the Gaza war. Barak was untouched – but only because the court that considered the request ruled that he enjoyed immunity as a Cabinet minister.

But the incident raised the prospect that Israelis might find it increasingly difficult to travel to European countries that recognize universal jurisdiction.

Just look at the differences in the first five paragraphs. It’s absolutely a hit piece on Israel, and it’s obviously Paisley Dodds’ work. I can’t find any other stories by her about Israel, but it seems like she’s being eased into the spot by her editors.

Nice. She’s off to a great start.

Comments (5)

09/27/2009

The AP: Nothing can’t be spun anti-Israel

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Iran, Israel — Meryl Yourish @ 1:22 pm

You would think that the AP would give us a break on Yom Kippur.

You would be wrong.

Israel shuts down for Day of Atonement amid fears

Alternate headline:

Israel shuts down for Yom Kippur, amid fears of perceived Iranian nuclear threat

Ohmigod! Israelis are terrified! What, what could possibly be the reason for this headline?

The start of the Jewish Day of Atonement at sundown Sunday marked the beginning of a day like no other in Israel, on which even Israelis with no connection to religion tend to put their normal lives on hold.

This year Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, comes at a particularly somber time following revelations of a previously hidden Iranian nuclear facility and more missile tests by the Revolutionary Guard.

Holy cow! The Iranians are trying to build a nuclear weapon? Did you know that? Did we know that? Did anyone know that? No wonder Israelis are terrified on Yom Kippur! Iran is trying to build a nuke!

“That proves to whoever was still in doubt that Iran is the most serious threat today on the peace of the world and its security,” said Israeli Deputy Foreign Ministry Danny Ayalon, speaking to Israeli Channel 10.

Um… and this is newly scary because…?

When Yom Kippur began at around 5 p.m. local time, TV and radio stations blinked off the air, flights in and out of Israel’s international airport ceased, and nearly all businesses closed. The streets emptied of cars and cities and highways were eerily quiet.

[...] But the holiday’s apparent calm conflicted with many Israelis’ fears about the perceived Iranian threat.

This fearmongering story quotes exactly zero Israelis who say they are scared. Really. Not a single quote. Not one. So I have to ask: What exactly is the point of this article? To being the narrative that a fearful Israel is going to lash out at Iran? Or is it just plain lousy journalism?

I’m thinking the latter.

So, all my fearful Israelis, I hope you have an easy fast, and may you be inscribed in the Book of Life for a good year. Maybe even a less fearful one.

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09/13/2009

The “U” in UN stands for “Useless”

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel, Lebanon — Meryl Yourish @ 10:56 am

UNIFIL was warned ten days beforehand that Lebanese terrorists planned to fire rockets into Israel. They were even told what kind of rockets were going to be used. And so, UNIFIL took that information and warned Israel.

Oh, wait. No they didn’t. They told the Lebanese army that terrorists were going to fire rockets into Israel. And nothing happened.

Lebanese civilians saw the terrorists drive into their area, unload the rockets, set a timer, and leave. Then they notified the authorities.

Oh, wait. No they didn’t. Nothing happened. Except that the rockets flew towards Israel.

The Israelis also filed a complaint about the rocket fire with the UN. I expect the UN to investigate the incident and issue a statement insisting that the Lebanese government is responsible for keeping its terrorists in check.

Oh, wait. No they won’t. Nothing will happen. Unless Israel retaliates, in which case, Ban Ki-Moon will issue a statement urging “all parties” to exercise restraint.

Benjamin Netanyahu warned today that Israel won’t accept these kind of attacks from Lebanon, and won’t hold back if attacked.

But nothing will happen.

Oh, wait. It will. Israel will respond if attacked, and will respond heavily. And the world will come down on Israel’s back, insisting that A) Israel is using disproportionate force; B) The Lebanese people are not responsible for Hezbollah’s action, in spite of the fact that Hezbollah is a fully-participating member of the Lebanese government; and C) Israel is deliberately targeting civilians.

And the way we know this is to check on this spin from the AP, buried deep in the article reporting on Netanyahu’s remarks:

In mid-July, a suspected Hezbollah arms depot exploded near the Israeli border. Israel said this was proof the group was rearming and stashing weapons in populated villages.

An illegal weapons depot explodes a short distance away from Israel’s northern border. UNSCR 1701 forbids Lebanon to have these weapon depots. And yet, the AP says that Israel claims this is proof that Hezbollah is rearming. Not the UN. Not UNIFIL. Israel says it, and therefore, we can question the truth of the claim.

The dates change. But really, the stories remain the same. I should just start recycling my old posts. It would save me a lot of time.

Comments (5)

09/09/2009

Update on my letter to the AP

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel — Meryl Yourish @ 10:00 am

I never did get an answer to my letter to the AP, asking why they keep using the phrase “traditionally Arab” to describe east Jerusalem.

But I notice that phrase hasn’t been used lately. The AP seems to be using just the words “east Jerusalem,” and not capitalizing “east,” which is, at least, progress. There is no such city as East Jerusalem, and I wish Jennifer Rubin at Contentions would stop referring to the nonexistent city.

I guess my fans over at AP don’t have the stones to respond to me, but their editors can’t deny facts when presented to them.

Comments (2)

09/04/2009

Analyzing the AP anti-Israel bias

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel, palestinian politics — Tags: Arab League, Israel, Media Bias — Meryl Yourish @ 1:30 pm

The subtleties of the AP anti-Israel bias are always in evidence, no matter who the writer, no matter what the subject. Witness:

The gist of the article is a debate between Israeli president and former Prime Minister Shimon Peres, and the Secretary-General of the Arab League, Amr Moussa. But before we get to all that, we have to have the set-up. First, tar Netanyahu as the one preventing peace because—wait for it—he refuses to stop building settlements.

The difficulty has been compounded by the fact that in March a right-leaning government replaced the previous more moderate one in Israel.

Several months ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reluctantly agreed to accept the principle of a Palestinian state – a position his predecessors had already adopted but his Likud party has not – but said it would have to have limits on its rights to have a military or control its airspace.

Next, give Moussa a chance to respond to the above, but don’t have Peres respond to it. Have Peres talk about a completely different topic.

Then, slam Peres and compliment Moussa, almost in the same breath (but while allowing Moussa to accuse the Israelis of duplicity):

Peres – pushing the boundaries on a role that is meant to be ceremonial and somewhat above the political and diplomatic fray – argued that even the borders initially delineated for the Palestinian state could be considered provisional and ultimately expanded.

“You want us to believe that?” thundered the urbane Moussa. “Another one of the tricks!”

Another way of telling which way the article is biased: There are ten paragraphs that contain quotes or paraphrases by Moussa. There are only six containing Peres’ quotes or paraphrases—and the article is titled “Peres: Palestinian state first, full peace later.”

I think, though, the thing that really got me is describing Moussa as “urbane” right after implying that Peres isn’t acting in his government’s best interest. In point of fact, nobody in Israel is complaining that Peres is overstepping his bounds, or if they have, I haven’t seen it. But don’t let the facts get in the way of a good anti-Israel slap.

The Associated Press: the anti-Israel Energizer bunny. They just never stop.

Comments (1)

08/17/2009

Palestinian civilians killed in fighting in Gaza, world ignores it

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Gaza, Hamas, palestinian politics — Tags: Israel, Palestinians, Terrorism — Meryl Yourish @ 7:00 am

Did you know there was a big battle in Rafah, near the Egyptian border? Did you also know that it took place in a mosque and a home? Did you further know that civilians were killed in the crossfire?

Of course you didn’t. Because it was Palestinians killing Palestinians (or maybe some foreign Arab fighters). So there’s no outcry from HRW. There’s barely a blip of notice in the wire services’ radar. No statement from the UN, no world outcry—because dead Palestinians don’t count unless they were killed by—or accused of being killed by—Israelis.

The fighting broke out late Friday when Hamas security men surrounded a mosque in the southern Gaza town of Rafah on the Egyptian border where about 100 members of Jund Ansar Allah were holed up.

[...] The Hamas forces raided the mosque, setting off a fierce gunbattle. Flares lit up the sky and the sound of machine gun fire echoed throughout the night.

Moussa escaped with some bodyguards to his home where another standoff ensued.

Here’s the AP spin:

Gaza’s Hamas rulers said they had restored law and order to the seaside territory Sunday after a bloody weekend of clashes with an al-Qaida-inspired group.

The militant Palestinian group crushed a challenge from Jund Ansar Allah, or the Soldiers of the Companions of God, one of a number of small, shadowy factions that are even more radical than Hamas.

[...] At least 150 people were wounded in the fighting, which began Friday afternoon after Moussa’s fiery speech and continued throughout the night in two fierce gunbattles outside his mosque and his home.

No mention of the fact that an 11-year-old girl was killed. There were two human rights groups protesting the casualties—Palestinian human rights groups, and props to them for speaking out. The more shame to the UN and HRW.

I won’t hold my breath waiting for HRW to issue a special report condemning this. As I recall, they didn’t condemn the Lebanese for brutally suppressing another al Qaeda splinter group last year, though many civilians were killed. Because, of course, it wasn’t Jews doing the killing.

Comments (2)

08/13/2009

A tale of two headlines

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Gaza, Hamas, Israeli Double Standard Time — Tags: Gaza, Hamas, Human Rights Watch, Israel — Meryl Yourish @ 3:00 pm

The AP anti-Israel bias, exhibit 4,678:

First, the AP report on the HRW report on Hamas war crimes:

Rights group: Hamas may have committed war crimes

Next, the AP report on the current HRW accusation that Israely committed war crimes:

Rights group: Israel killed unarmed Palestinians

No, no bias there. Let us check the leads.

A prominent human rights group said there is “strong evidence” that Gaza’s Hamas rulers committed war crimes by allowing militants to fire rockets from the territory that killed civilians in Israel, according to a report released Thursday.

The 31-page report by the New York-based Human Rights Watch focuses on Hamas’ actions in connection with Israel’s three-week offensive in Gaza that ended in late January. Human Rights Watch, as well as other groups, have previously accused Israel of committing war crimes during the offensive aimed at stopping Palestinian rocket fire.

“Hamas rocket attacks targeting Israeli civilians are unlawful and unjustifiable, and amount to war crimes,” said Iain Levine of Human Rights Watch. But the report stopped short of accusing Hamas militants of war crimes, with officials saying only a court could make that determination.

Note that in the article about Hamas war crimes, the AP writers and editors put accusations of Israeli war crimes in the second paragraph. And note the quote that says even though Hamas sent rockets into civilian areas, HRW isn’t really saying they’re war crimes because, well, an actually court hasn’t stated them as such. Will there be such even-handedness regarding Israel?

A new report by Human Rights Watch charged Thursday that Israeli soldiers killed eleven unarmed Palestinian civilians who were carrying white flags in Shooting incidents during Israel’s offensive in Gaza earlier this year.

The report says the civilians included five women and four children. The group urged Israel to conduct investigations into the deaths, which it said occurred when the civilians were “in plain view and posed no apparent security threat.”

The group says at least three witnesses confirmed the details in each of the seven separate shootings.

The report is the latest in a slew of charges from human rights groups alleging that Israel violated the rules of war in its Gaza offensive. The reports on the Gaza war have focused on Israeli violations, but Human Rights Watch has also said Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups violated the rules of war by firing thousands of rockets at Israeli civilians.

Look at the two bolded sections of each lead, and figure out which one is the more damning. Here’s a hint: It ain’t the one about how Hamas “violated the rules of war.” Funny how they use the phrase “war crimes” so easily when applied to Israel, and yet can’t seem to muster the same phrase when applied to terrorists using human shields, children in combat, and based themselves in hospitals to protect themselves.

What time is it again? Of course. It’s Israeli Double Standard Time, which, luckily, only occurs on days that end with a “y.”

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08/11/2009

This is why nobody believes the MSM

Filed under: AP Media Bias, The One — Tags: AP Media Bias, Barack Obama — Meryl Yourish @ 7:00 am

Oh, please. Is there anyone out there with a brain who believes for a second that anyone other than thoroughly-vetted Obama plants will be allowed at this town hall meeting?

Obama braces for ‘vigorous’ town hall health talk
A day before facing a potentially boisterous town hall in New Hampshire, President Barack Obama praised the spirited debate over his health care plans on Monday and predicted “sensible and reasoned arguments” would ultimately prevail in Congress.

Let’s face it, Obama’s town hall audiences are more thoroughly vetted than his Cabinet appointees. This is a line of absolute bull. Doesn’t the media get tired of making stuff up?

Comments (1)

08/10/2009

Monday SNB

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Gaza, Israel, Religion, Terrorism, The One, palestinian politics — Tags: AP Media Bias, Iran, Israel, Lebanon — Meryl Yourish @ 9:00 am

Funny how the AP keeps on missing these tidbits: Fatah has approved adding “the right to resist occupation in all its forms” to its new platform. (This is on top of insising that all of Jerusalem is theirs.) They further explain:

“we won’t abandon any of our options, and we believe that resistance, in all forms, is a legitimate right of occupied people in confronting their occupiers.”

And yet, we never seem to see the AP articles that emphasize the Palestinian refusal to compromise. Only Israel’s. Funny, that.

What AP media bias? Yesterday, Palestinians fired mortars at the Erez crossing while sick Palestinians were being transferred from Palestinian ambulances to Israeli ones. So Israel bombed a smuggling tunnel (should have bombed a lot more of them). The AP, which can’t seem to notice that Fatah is turning into Hamas Lite, found its voice again, against Israel. The headline: Israeli warplanes bomb tunnel along Gaza border. Just in case you thought maybe it was sightseeing planes that bombed the tunnel.

The “Judaization” of Jerusalem includes rebuilding synagogues: Jews rebuilt a synagogue that was built in Jerusalem in 1867, but because it’s on the “wrong” side of the line, Ehud Barak has come under fire for attending the ceremony to welcome the return of the Torah to a 142-year-old Jewish house of worship. Jews were forced out of there in 1938, and yet, we never seem to read about that aspect of Jerusalem anywhere but in the Jewish press. The synagogue is 100 yards from the Temple Mount. And it was nearly destroyed, of course, when Jordan controlled Jerusalem from 1948 to 1967. Sure, give Jerusalem back to the Muslims. Because they did such a great job safeguarding other religious sites before.

Bibi to Beirut: L’etat, c’est Hezbullah. Benjamin Netanyahu warned Lebanon that Israel will hold the entire country responsible for whatever Hezbullah does. Which makes sense, considering that Druze leader Walid Jumblatt has thrown in with Hezbullah and declared that he was wrong about Iran, so they’re going to be making policy with a voting majority soon. Right now, it’s just a war of words. I hope it stays that way, but it looks like Iran is placing its ducks in a row to respond to any attack on its nuclear facilities. And speaking of Iran:

Iran to Obama: No fist unclenching until we say so. Iran is bent on running out the clock. I know my regular readers are going to be shocked to hear this, but they’re not going to adhere to any U.S. deadline for talks—not even the one set by The One. And the clock ticks closer to Israeli action. Say, Iranian opposition: Faster, please. Oh, wait. They’re all in jail now.

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08/04/2009

The Fatah convention: War is peace

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Terrorism, palestinian politics — Tags: Israel, Palestinians, Terrorism — Meryl Yourish @ 9:30 am

Mahmoud Abbas, the “moderate” leader of Fatah, declared today that the Palestinians reserve the “right” to “resistance.” But of course, he mouthed enough platitudes so that the anti-Israel media can pretend that he wants peace.

“Although peace is our choice, we reserve the right to resistance, legitimate under international law,” Abbas said in a policy speech, using a term that encompasses armed confrontation with Israel and non-violent protests.

That’s the Ha’aretz definition of “resistance.” When you count the fact that “resistance” and “armed struggle” also means “murdering civilians on buses, in shops, and in their homes,” there’s not a whole lot of peace-making coming out of the convention. And just in case you weren’t quite sure about it:

After a journalist asked Rajoub about a large picture of a young boy armed with a rifle that was displayed at the conference, the former Arafat aide responded that Fatah has not abandoned nor will it abandon the possibility of resuming “armed struggle,” which he says remains a tool at the Palestinians’ disposal.

Here are two versions of the AP spin on the issue. The first, from yesterday, is a piece insisting that the Palestinians have “marginalized” terror. And the article manages to contradict its headline in the very first paragraph.

Fatah commits to Israel peace talks in party draft
The proposed new platform of the Palestinians’ moderate Fatah party marginalizes the once central theme of “armed struggle” against Israel, but demands a complete Israeli settlement freeze before talks for a final peace deal can take place.

An interesting side note: I found this in the Canadian press and nowhere else. Look at the headline.

In party draft, Fatah commits to peace talks but asserts right to resist Israeli occupation
The Palestinian Fatah movement says it will keep pursuing peace talks but reserves the right to resist Israeli occupation.

And the definition of Fatah:

Fatah’s 1989 program called for “armed struggle” against Israel. The new platform, published Monday, is vague on violence but stresses negotiations and civil disobedience.

That’s very different from the larger article:

In Fatah’s 1989 program, a call to “armed struggle” against Israel played a central role. That idea is being pushed to the sidelines in the new draft, without being dropped altogether – a likely nod to Fatah’s hard-line wing, particularly delegates from Lebanon and Syria. Authors of the draft suggested that the party also needs to remain competitive with the populist appeal of the Islamic militant Hamas, which focuses on armed resistance.

And now that the conference is actually occurring, this is the AP spin:

Abbas: Palestinians must stick with peace talks
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas launched his Fatah movement’s first conference in two decades Tuesday with a call for his people to limit their resistance to Israel to marches and protests and not to abandon peace talks despite years of setbacks.

Note that the lead uses the Palestinian term, “resistance,” and spins it so that it looks like Abbas wants peace talks—yet glosses over the fact that Abbas refuses to sit down with Israel until the Obama settlement freeze is in place. And Israel, of course, is the instransigent player in this game—for refusing to move backwards in agreements that even the Palestinians have managed to live with.

And let’s check on the AP spin a bit more, as the editors buy into the PA pap:

Abbas said the Palestinians have a right to resist Israeli occupation, but said such resistance is best embodied by the weekly marches and protests in Bilin and Naalin, two West Bank villages that have lost hundreds of acres to Israel’s separation barriers.

He said Fatah rejected terrorism when Arafat first unilaterally declared Palestinian independence in 1988. “We are not terrorists, and we reject a description of our legitimate struggle as terrorism,” he said. “This will be our firm and lasting position.”

Ah. There it is. “Resistance” and “armed struggle,” even when it comes in the form of bombs blowing up civilians, is not terrorism. Murdering “settlers” in their homes is not terrorism. It’s all just civil disobedience. Just like in Bi’ilin, where mobs hurl stones at soldiers on a weekly basis. And yet, if you look at this chart, you will see that Fatah has been actively launching terror attacks against Israelis since long before 1988. Let’s not forget that the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade is also Fatah, but Fatah itself claimed a suicide bombing as recently as 2002. When you erase the fiction that Al-Aqsa is separate from Fatah, the terror attacks have been continuous.

Abbas is also passing along conspiracy theories that blame Israel for causing the events that started the 1982 Lebanon war, and for Arafat’s death. Yes, he’s a moderate—moderately crazy, as evidenced by his master’s thesis in Holocaust denial.

While the world watches, absorbs the b.s. and passes along the lies, the IDF is watching, too. And waiting to see what happens before issuing an opinion about whether the PA is changing.

My money’s on “not.” As if you couldn’t tell.

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07/29/2009

Waiting for AP: Two days and counting

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel — Tags: AP Media Bias, Israel — Meryl Yourish @ 5:00 pm

I sent this email to the AP two days ago:

To the editor,

Could you please explain to me why the AP uses the phrase, “traditionally Arab east Jerusalem” when discussing Jews living in the eastern section of Jerusalem? Who has designated the eastern section as “traditionally Arab”? In point of fact, that is an inaccurate portrayal of the city’s character. There was a large Jewish community in east Jerusalem until 1948, when Jordan killed or forced out all of the Jewish inhabitants of the Jewish Quarter—which was in east Jerusalem. It is only in the years from 1948 to 1967 that there were no Jews in the eastern portion of the city. Prior to 1948, the history of the Jewish community of east Jerusalem goes back thousands of years.

In your article, Envoy: US favors overall Mideast peace accord, by Josef Federman, you write:

“Some 280,000 Israelis live in West Bank settlements, in addition to 180,000 residents living in Jewish neighborhoods built in traditionally Arab east Jerusalem.”

Clearly, east Jerusalem is not “traditionally” Arab, and has been Arab only for 19 of the last several thousand years. Or, if you want more recent history, out of the last sixty years, Jews were absent from the Jewish Quarter only for nineteen years, and not by their choice.

Why does the AP use such a description when the Jewish Quarter is, and always has been, in the eastern section of the city? Wouldn’t that make east Jerusalem “traditionally Jewish”?

I look forward to seeing you fix this error.

I have yet to hear back from the AP as to why east Jerusalem is “traditionally Arab.” I suspect I will not hear back at all, but that may be the cynic in me.

Update: No response, but no more “traditionally Arab” east Jerusalem, either.

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07/22/2009

The evolution of an anti-Israel AP headline

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israel, palestinian politics — Tags: Israel, Media Bias, Palestinians — Meryl Yourish @ 11:00 am

See the pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel spin in action.

First:

Israel cuts Palestinian tragedy from textbooks
The Israeli government will remove references to what the Palestinians call the “catastrophe” of Israel’s creation from textbooks for Arab schoolchildren, the country’s education minister said Wednesday.

The reference to “al-naqba” or catastrophe, what the Palestinian’s call their defeat and exile in the war over Israel’s 1948 creation, was controversially inserted by a dovish education minister for the first time in 2007.

The phrase remains contentious six decades after Israel was founded.

“No other country in the world, in its official curriculum, would treat the fact of its founding as a catastrophe,” Education Minister Gideon Saar told Israel’s parliament on Wednesday.

“What will you do to a teacher who addresses the class and begins to explain what happened to the family of a child who asks?” Ahmad Tibi, an Arab Israeli lawmaker, asked Saar in parliament.

Second: Notice that a quote pops up in the next edition, about “naqba denial”—yet another example of the Palestinians attempting to expropriate terms meaningful to Jews. To compare the removal of a negatively descriptive word (“catastrophe”) regarding the founding of Israel to the denial of the Holocaust is spurious and insulting—but not, apparently, to the AP, which puts it in the lead.

Israel cuts Palestinian tragedy from textbooks
The Israeli government will remove references to what Palestinians call the “catastrophe” of Israel’s creation from textbooks for Arab schoolchildren, the education minister said Wednesday.

The reference to “al-naqba,” the Arabic word catastrophe as Palestinians call their defeat and exile in the war over Israel’s 1948 creation, was controversially inserted by a dovish education minister for the first time in 2007.

The phrase remains contentious six decades after Israel was founded.

“No other country in the world, in its official curriculum, would treat the fact of its founding as a catastrophe,” Education Minister Gideon Saar told Israel’s parliament on Wednesday.

Israeli Arab lawmaker Hana Sweid accused the government of “naqba denial.”

Third:

Israel cuts 1948 ‘catastrophe’ from Arabic texts

The lead is the same. The headline is now using the Palestinian narrative that 1948 was the naqba in the headline, though using the words “what Palestinians call” in the lead to justify their objectivity. The “naqba denial” quote is still there, of course. Your latest version of yellow journalism, courtesy of the Associated Press—which is actually among the least anti-Israel of the mainstream media (cf: Reuters, AFP).

Update: The latest AP version adds an extra anti-Netanyahu graf to the lead, and drops the “naqba” quote to paragraph six as a result. The third paragraph has been given extra, added, anti-Israel value, as well. (The bold is the addition to the paragraph.) Witness:

The phrase remains contentious six decades later, a symptom of the continuing divisions in Israel. Many Israeli Arabs identify politically with their Palestinian counterparts in the West Bank and Gaza. As a result, some Israeli Jews accuse Israeli Arabs of disloyalty to the country.

Israel’s current government, headed by Benjamin Netanyahu and his hard-line Likud Party, includes members who favor cracking down on Israeli Arabs by ordering loyalty oaths or even moving them out of Israel.

It just doesn’t get any better than this, eh? Truly, the evolution of the anti-Israel AP narrative is an astonishing thing to behold.

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07/19/2009

Obama ups the ante on “settlements”

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israeli Double Standard Time, Jews — Tags: Israel, Jerusalem — Meryl Yourish @ 8:14 am

The Obama administration shows its hand by demanding that Israel stop building in eastern Jerusalem. No word yet if anyone ever objected to Jordan’s near destruction of the city’s ancient Jewish Quarter (including synagogues and Torahs) which was—wait for it—in eastern Jerusalem.

There is going to be some kind of showdown, methinks.

Israeli officials said the country’s ambassador to Washington, Michael Oren, was summoned to the State Department over the weekend and told that a project being developed by an American millionaire in the disputed section of the holy city should not go ahead.

[...] According to Army Radio, the U.S. has demanded that planning approval for the project be revoked.

Amazingly, the AP understands that some territories recaptured in the Six Day War are “disputed” territories—but apparently only when the dispute is whether Jews may live there.

The current narrative utterly ignores the Jewish history of the city, including the fact that there were 100,000 Jews in Jerusalem in 1948, many of whom lived in the Jewish Quarter in the eastern half of the city:

East Jerusalem is an especially volatile issue because it is the site of key Jewish, Christian and Muslim holy sites. The Palestinians want the traditionally Arab sector of the city to be the capital of their future state.

“The traditionally Arab sector” is a lie. The Jewish quarter was in eastern Jerusalem, which makes it, let’s think—a traditionally Jewish sector as well—but the news services can never seem to mention this.

And here, buried in the very bottom of the story, is something that is absolutely pertinent to why the Obama administration has no right to tell Israel to stop this project:

The east Jerusalem project is being developed by Irving Moskowitz, an influential supporter of Israeli settlement in east Jerusalem who purchased the Shepherd Hotel in 1985 and plans to tear it down and build apartments in its place.

The Jerusalem municipality issued a statement saying the purchase was legal and it had acted with “full transparency” in granting building permits.

The Obama administration is telling Israel to ignore its own laws. Why? Because the Obama administration is going with the narrative that there can be no Jews in “traditionally Arab” Jerusalem.

And how did the Prime Minister of Israel react to this demand?

On Sunday, Netanyahu told his Cabinet there would be no limits on Jewish construction anywhere in “unified Jerusalem.”

“We cannot accept the fact that Jews wouldn’t be entitled to live and buy anywhere in Jerusalem,” Netanyahu declared, calling Israeli sovereignty over the entire city “indisputable.”

The Israeli public is solidly behind Netanyahu on this. Just as Obama is trying to ignore American public opinion on any legislation he wants to push through (cf: ObamaCare’s sinking poll numbers).

Once again, we have an example of the Obama administration dictating only to Israel, and giving the Palestinians a pass.

This man is no friend of Israel. The 78% of Jews who voted for him were fooling themselves.

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07/13/2009

Netanyahu: Two states for two peoples. Media: he doesn’t really mean it

Filed under: AP Media Bias, Israeli Double Standard Time, palestinian politics — Meryl Yourish @ 6:00 am

Funny how the Israeli press is pretty sure that Benjamin Netanyahu isn’t lying when he says he would like to see Israel at peace with the Palestinians and surrounding nations, but the rest of the world media thinks he doesn’t mean it.

For instance, in an article titled “Netanyahu aide: No Golan pullout for peace,” the AP writes:

Like the contacts with Syria, talks between Israel and the Palestinians have also been frozen since Netanyahu came to power.

Under U.S. pressure, Netanyahu has accepted the idea of a Palestinian state, while attaching conditions the Palestinians reject.

(The fact that the article is not about the Palestinians is besides the point, but the AP never misses an opportunity to slam Israel.)

Aluf Benn, in Ha’aretz, the newspaper that is to Netanyahu as the New York Times is to George W. Bush:

On Sunday Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used the stage afforded by the cabinet meeting to make his most far-reaching statement to date: “We have achieved national consensus on the concept of two states for two peoples.”

[...] Politicians from his Likud party were not present at the Bar-Ilan speech, but at the government meeting they listened and kept mum, by consensus. Minister without Portfolio Benny Begin, Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya’alon, Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz, Culture and Sports Minister Limor Livnat – nary a one said a word against Netanyahu after the meeting.

Not only did Netanyahu adopt the slogan of that old lefty Uri Avnery, he also backed it up with measures on the ground, undertaken in cooperation with Defense Minister Ehud Barak. Many roadblocks have been dismantled, and it is now easier and more convenient for Palestinians to travel around the West Bank. The security cooperation between Israel and the Palestinian Authority has already surpassed the peaks of the Oslo days, according to senior Palestinian sources. Both sides have an interest in playing down this last point, each for its own political reasons, but it has to be said to Netanyahu’s credit that he is making good on promises made before the election.

And from the interview that AP is quoting, and that is only a Netanyahu aide speaking the truth:

Everyone with eyes to see, sees that there is a failure of Palestinian leadership. There is no Palestinian Sadat. There is no Palestinian Mandela. Abu Mazen is not vulgar like Arafat and not militant and extreme like Hamas. There could be worse than him. But even in him I do not discern the interest or the will to arrive at the end of the conflict with Israel. On the contrary, he is preserving eternal grievances against us and intensifying them.

The AP does not use this quote. Here is the watered-down version, and the response from Palestinians:

There “could be worse” leaders than Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Arad said. “But even with him I don’t see a real interest and desire to arrive at the end of the conflict with Israel. On the contrary, he is preserving eternal claims against us and inflaming them,” he said.

Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat called Arad’s remarks “inappropriate and unacceptable.”

“President Abbas is president of the Palestinian people and he is a full partner. And he’s waiting for an Israeli partner,” Erekat said.

Note once again that the Palestinians are turning around accusations that are utterly true about them, and trying to repackage them to be about Israel. Palestinians have been stealing the Israeli narrative for decades. Thus, the “Law of Return,” which allows anyone of Jewish heritage to emigrate to Israel and become a citizen, is warped into the “right of return,” in which all Palestinians who fled their homes in 1948, and all of their descendants, must be allowed to return to their original homes in Israel. Now the Palestinian meme is that there is no Israeli peace partner. Watch it start to be picked up by the anti-Israel bloggers, and ultimately by the news media, even as Netanyahu states clearly that he is willing to see a Palestinian state created—under certain conditions. The conditions that the Palestinians reject? A demilitarized state, recognize that Israel is a Jewish State, no settlement of Palestinian refugees in Israel, no division of Jerusalem, and a trade-off of territory incorporating large Jewish population blocs built inside the 1949 Armistice lines (that the world likes to call the 1967 borders).

The onus here is not on the Israelis to accept Palestinian statehood. That has been done. The onus is on the Palestinians to accept the legitimacy of the Jewish State in the land of her ancestors. That has never been done. And yet, the media refuse to hold the Palestinians up to the same strict standard they hold Israelis. Before Netanyahu, the demon was Ariel Sharon. During the Olmert years, the demon was the Israeli right. Or the “settlers.” But never, in the years since I started interpreting the media bias about Israel, have the media ever blamed the Palestinians for their terrorism, rejectionism, and refusal to compromise.

I believe if the situations were reversed, and it was the state of Palestine versus the Jewish Liberation Army, we’d be hearing how the terrorists must be confronted, must never be dealt with, and must accept the situation of having lost the war. We’d be told that Jewish refugees had to settle where they were and make lives for themselves and forget about ever returning to their homeland. But then, I already know what the world thinks of Jews.

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