Disappeared News

by Larry Geller

The murders of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, including children and women, are so horrendous that Israel can’t cover them up, even by banning journalists and aid workers from the killing fields. No amount of AIPAC money can keep a lid on the news.

Of course, it’s all over the web. Many newspapers still cling to their intense pro-Israel bias. Our own Honolulu Advertiser is an example of this.

While demonstrations grow around the world (including within Israel), and even the Vatican has compared Gaza to a Nazi concentration camp, here’s the AP story that the Advertiser ran this morning:

Now, of course the rockets fired from Lebanon are news, but the choice of article to run in the space given and the headline are, as usual, designed to be sympathetic to Israel.

What about printing a report like this:

Palestinian Toll Passes 700; Around One-Third Children

Tens of thousands of Palestinians have fled their homes in the southern town of Rafah as Israel intensifies its assault on the Gaza Strip. Palestinians reported dozens of Israeli air strikes overnight, with attacks hitting homes, mosques and tunnels. Earlier today, the UN said Israeli forces fired on one of its relief convoys trying to pick up supplies. Al Jazeera reports at least one Palestinian was killed and two others injured. At least twenty-nine Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks Wednesday, including a family of four traveling in their car in Beit Lahia. The Arabic news channel Al Jazeera reports the Palestinian death toll stands at more than 700 overall, including 219 children. More than 3,000 Palestinians have also been wounded. Ten Israelis have died over the same thirteen-day period, including seven soldiers, four of them by so-called friendly fire.

School Bombing Toll Reaches 46 as Israel Retracts Claim of Militant Fire

Another four Palestinians died Wednesday from injuries sustained in the Israeli bombing of a UN school sheltering Gaza civilians in Jabalya, bringing the death toll to forty-six. Another fifty-five were wounded. UN spokesperson Chris Gunness said Israeli officials have privately retracted their widely cited initial claim that Hamas militants were firing from the school. [Democracy Now, 1/8/2009]

Or how about an article focusing on the peace efforts of the EU, Egypt, and others, and how the US, along with Israel, has blocked any action at the United Nations?

The rockets from Lebanon are part of the story, but a small part. The news is the massacre being carried out by Israel against a helpless civilian population, and the cutoff of humanitarian aid.

There’s no transcript for tonight’s WBAI evening news, but I thought it’s worth including their coverage of the Gaza situation. It’s a small audio file, please click below to listen. WBAI can be found at wbai.org, and all of the programs are podcast generally within a few minutes of broadcast.
Click  here to listen.

Permalink posted by Larry @ 1/08/2009 08:48:00 PM