Since last Wednesday, Palestinian terrorists have been sending rockets into Israel, then pretending that they’ll honor a cease-fire, then sending more rockets into Israel, then pretending that it’s all Israel’s fault for killing terrorists who were just–you guessed it, sending rockets into Israel. The goal is to try to murder Israeli civilians.
So of course, Israel’s leadership is talking about the consequences of terrorists launching rockets into Israel, particularly since they no longer have to worry about Gilad Shalit’s kidnappers displaying his dead body and saying “We told you we’d kill him if you came into Gaza.” There is no reason for Israel to hold back–and yet, Israel is holding back. And not only is Israel holding back, but the only Palestinians killed or wounded in the last week are the terrorists who are launching, trying to launch, or just launched rockets into Israel.
So when the Israeli Prime Minister talks tough, what is the headline?
Israeli leader threatens Gaza militants
Really? I mean, AP headline writers, really? What exactly is the threat?
In his speech, Netanyahu vowed to act with “strength and determination” against the militants. “Whoever attacks Israel is risking his life,” he said.
Wait, what? Netanyahu said that Israel is going to fight back against the terrorists? That terrorists who are trying to murder Israelis risk being killed themselves? Say, that doesn’t sound like a threat to me. It sounds more like a warning. Which would have been the perfect verb to use in the headline, don’t you think?
Israeli leader warns Gaza militants
It’s much less ominous. But then, the anti-Israel editors at the Associated Press aren’t interested in presenting the Israeli side fairly. Israel threatens. Israel kills. Active, ominous verbs for the Israeli side of the story, passive, whitewashed voice for the Palestinian side. Worse still, the AP is carrying Hamas’ water on this one. Look at this unbelievable excerpt:
In Gaza, Hamas officials condemned the Israeli threats.
“These remarks reflect the brutal attitude and mentality of the enemy leadership, which does not respect the calm and all the efforts that have been made in this regard,” said Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum.
He urged the international community to pressure Israel not to launch “any crazy adventure” in Gaza.
What calm? What efforts? Nobody sends a rocket out of Hamas without express permission from the Hamas rulers. I know this, Israel knows this, and frankly, the AP writers and editors know this, too.
Take another look at those three paragraphs. The AP is quoting a Hamas condemnation of tough talk by Israel’s prime minister. And yet, when Hamas leaders constantly talk of destroying Israel, the AP seems to miss these very public statements:
“Palestinians mark the occasion this year with great hope of bringing to an end the Zionist project in Palestine,” Ismail Haniyeh, the prime minister of the Hamas government in Gaza, told about 10,000 people at a Gaza City mosque.
Some of my readers may think I’m being too hard on the AP this week. Let me think about that for a second…
Nah. They are carrying some major anti-Israel bias this week. They deserve it.