An enlightened view of the media: Britain’s public broadcaster the BBC launched an Arabic television service on Tuesday with funding from the government to provide what it said would be independent news, analysis and current affairs. The corporation said the channel would broadcast for an initial 12 hours a day to anyone with a satellite…
Showing all posts tagged Gaza
A Jew who feels shame about Israel’s actions
My following letter appear in today’s Sydney Morning Herald: Criticising Israel is a risky business. Robert Goot and David Knoll (Letters, March 12) round on Alan Ramsey for suggesting that Palestinians will not be celebrating Kevin Rudd’s parliamentary motion on the 60th anniversary of the Jewish state. They use the armoury of Israeli Foreign Ministry…
The price of Jewish blood
Medialens, March 11: The horrific shooting of eight young people at a Jewish seminary in Jerusalem last Thursday was followed by saturation media coverage. International statesmen lined up with condemnations of the attack and condolences for the victims and their families. Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced: “This is clearly an attempt to strike a blow…
A glaring double standard
After the outrage of yesterday’s terrorist attack in Jerusalem against rabbinical students, a perspective we rarely hear in the pro-Israeli, Western media: The association of rabbis for the people and land of Israel headed by extremist rabbi Dov Lior issued on Wednesday a religious ruling legitimizing the shelling of Palestinian civilian gatherings by IOF troops…
Phoning the terrorists
Tony Karon, Rootless Cosmopolitan, March 4: Once upon a time, Israelis and Palestinians looked to the U.S. to intervene at moments of heightened confrontation to mediate between the two sides and contain the damage. The Bush Administration, however, has proved entirely incapable of playing this role, because its own diplomatic efforts are hidebound by the…
Welcome to your racist Jewish state
Version one: Harsh words were exchanged Wednesday as Knesset Member Effie Eitam (National Union-NRP) addressed remarks made by a number of Arab lawmakers during a rally in the northern town of Umm al-Fahm in protest of IDF activity in Gaza. “The day will come when we will banish you from this house (Knesset) and the…
Believing in (our) democracy
Al-Jazeera English on the American plans to overthrow the democratically elected Hamas government (based on this stunning Vanity Fair article):
Going after civilians
Israel’s leading human rights organisation reveals the barbarity of the Jewish state: B’Tselem expresses grave concern at the large number of children and other uninvolved civilians among those killed and wounded in the Gaza Strip in recent days. According to B’Tselem figures, from 27 February to the afternoon of 3 March, 106 Palestinians were killed…
The convenient narrative
Gideon Levy, Haaretz, February 2: Even yesterday evening, after the IDF already had killed about 50 Palestinians, at least half of them unarmed, and including quite a number of women and children, Jerusalem continued to claim, “At present there will be no major ground operation.” It’s incredible: The IDF penetrates the heart of a crowded…
The easy test
Israel is unsure whether striking Palestinian civilian areas is illegal under international law. Here’s a hint: it is. The ongoing attacks in Gaza will only lead to further conflict and a growing Palestinian support for Hamas resistance. The price these commanders will pay, for committing war crimes, is an ongoing battle by human rights lawyers…