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October 5, 2009
Why did israel jail the pregnant woman?
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 Yourish.
Posted by SoccerDad at October 5, 2009 6:11 AM
Rumor Mill In Overdrive: Now US Will Be The One To Bomb Iran
Goldstone Report: More Errors Coming Out
Why did israel jail the pregnant woman?
Syrian in the u.s. for talks
Goldstone leaves many stones unturned
Except for one detail
Hamas: We'll put someone at the Ezzadin Al-Qassam Brigades Self-investigation Unit right on it
Goldstone Report: Did The Commission Even Read Their Own Report?
Goldstone Report: Getting The Law Wrong
Goldstone Report: Errors Of Fact
I also read this morning that an Israeli MP canceled a trip to the UK for fear that he would be arrested and put on trial for war crimes.
Second most important lesson of the Holocaust: Being innocent of a crime does not protect you from being executed for it.
Posted by: Tatterdemalian at October 5, 2009 10:23 AMThe media is morally bankrupt.
Posted by: Laura at October 5, 2009 12:01 PMLaura, Israel is also morally bankrupt by allowing freed terrorists to be treated as heroes in their own society instead of executing them as they should be.
Posted by: NormanF at October 5, 2009 1:46 PMIsrael does not have a death penalty. Only people they can't capture and imprison, and who have proven themselves too dangerous to let go free, are killed (which of course includes all the Palestinians who take up arms against them). I personally think there is a place for capital punishment, but I won't call Israel morally bankrupt just because the people are willing to suffer the consequences of abolishing it.
Posted by: Tatterdemalian at October 5, 2009 3:19 PM"Why Did Israel Jail Pregnant Women"
ANSWER: Same reason Israel won't let GAZANS import CONCRETE. Because they are EVIL and whatever it takes to cleanse their land of Arabs.
nice spin douche dad. Hey, why don't you spin the Canannites, the people your "promised land" really belongs to.
Hey soccer douche, how bout some truth, like these women and many KIDS are thrown into jail for NO REASON, and are NEVER CHARGED....they just rot in jail, their only crime being born on the land "god" promised YOUR people.
You will not have peace until the palestinians have their freedom, and IDF are the terrorists..
The world is starting to agree more and more with the above and noticing how douche bag's like YOU are spinning the truth. The world realizes that the Israelis are worse than the Arabs. GET OVER IT :)
Posted by: james at October 5, 2009 3:49 PMWe had to get some hateful crap from Saint James (do you know where your name comes from, anal orifice?), with NO facts and NO logic whatever. Do you know of one name of one terrorist jailed in Israel without a trial? IDF soldiers (I was one) are "terrorists" because they go after killers of women and children as an army, but those killers are NOT terrorists? Dont yopu wish your mother had used a douche bag before she conceived you?
Posted by: Hamanslayer at October 5, 2009 8:50 PMDear Mr. Harnanslayer
The State of Israel was born in terrorism. Your leaders bombed, shot, and threatened the non Jewish people of the lands making up Israel to make them leave. Your first prime minister was an active terrorist who planned and carried out bombing of innocent people who did not like his plans. If you fought for Israel you fought for a corrupt state that was born with blood on its hands. Your vaunted army exists because your government got billions in aid by bribing the US congress through American Zionists and fellow hangers on. If Israel wants to exist it has to figure out some way to live with the Arabs in peace. Your governments wall and settlements is just postponing the day of reckoning.
Posted by: mfellion at October 6, 2009 12:28 AMmfellion you ignorant douchebag, regarding your twisted and inverted version of the Mideast situation, how is Israel supposed to find a way to live in peace with the arabs when in fact it is the arabs who refuse to live in peace with Israel and want it annihilated. Learn the true facts.
The Real Obstacle To Middle East Peace? Let’s Check the Record:
http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/the-real-obstacle-to-middle-east-peace-lets-check-the-record/
Posted by: Laura at October 6, 2009 12:22 PMMfellion and "Saint James" and Hitler and Sadam Hussein and Osama Bin Kalb Laden and Ghadafi and FarrakhaN-ASS, and Chavez and all those types (including Arafat the shitty little ugly terrorist "freedom fighter" whose widow and heirs now live in luxury in France off the millions he stole from the oh-so-rich Palestinians in Gaza and the "West Bank" of Palestine -- BTW, what's on the "East Bank" of Palestine?), are NOT ignorant, as Laura thinks. They are vicious lying bastards with agendas of hatred, and they KNOW DAMN WELL they are lying, twisting the truth, and trying to give propaganda "ammunition" to those who hate and want to use lies and continue to spread them and keep them blowing bigger. You cannot confuse them with facts or truth -- and it is truly unfortunate that the only way to deal with them is as you deal with roaches, rats, termites, rabid dogs, and packs of hyenas. For they are ever more dangerous!
Posted by: Hamanslayer at October 6, 2009 11:40 PM"are NOT ignorant, as Laura thinks. They are vicious lying bastards with agendas of hatred, and they KNOW DAMN WELL they are lying, twisting the truth, and trying to give propaganda "ammunition" to those who hate and want to use lies and continue to spread them and keep them blowing bigger".
................................................
You're right, mfellion is not ignorant, he's a vicious hatemonger who knows he is spewing lies.
I saw the headline and I thought, is this about that woman from Mea Shearim known in the media as the "Starving Mother"? She was jailed by Israeli authorities even though she supposedly had a mental disorder. But, since she will never be included in any "prisoner trades" the media doesn't give a crap about her.
Posted by: Babushka at October 7, 2009 4:10 PMWhat the Palestinians are now doing, the Israelis did immediately following WWII. In fact this is one of the main reasons, the Brits arrested so many Israelis. After losing many soldiers and unable to stop the terrorism they threw up thier hands and abandoned the situation in 1948 and to avenge themselves they allowed the Arabs arms thinking they would even the score for the dead British Soldiers. It backfired.
Strange the voices calling for Palestinian Terrorism said little about the Israeli Terrorism then. It was called heroic survival. Perhaps that may be what is heroic survival for the Palestinians now.
Only the Man of Perdition will bring peace and it will be shortlived. 1260 days to be exact. In the meantime the Luciferians who govern America and the elites of Israel in collusion will bring this man to Power with the help of the European Community. He will seem like a godsend, except the wrong god.
The religionist of America will be surprised to learn that the Troubles prognosticated are post to the coming of The Man of True Peace. Many of their pulpit thumpers will be executed by thier followers due to this disillusionment. In the meantime the Latter Day Babylonians will see thier country decimated to embers by a coalition of enemies. Lucifer draws a high price to those illusioned by he. This mysterious country and not system will draw humanity into Lucifer's worship and as a result will murder many citizens in the name of security and to accomplish will mark everyone except those chosen to escape Lucis. Hence his rage with those with a pretense as followers of the Son of Man. THerefore they will comply with Mystery Babylon's system of marking those who wish to eat.
For it will be a nation that trades with all nations surrounded by many oceans and ports and have fame as wealthy and by its great power it intimidates the nations. Its end will come in one hour even as we approach that hour.