The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a statement yesterday that promised to “liberalize the system by which civilian goods enter Gaza.” The announcement from Israel’s security cabinet came after widespread international pressure on Israel following a deadly Israeli naval raid on a humanitarian flotilla trying to break the three-year old blockade of Gaza.
U.S. media echoed the Israeli press release in headlines like “Israel to Ease Gaza Land Blockade” (New York Times, 6/17/10) and “Israel Eases Restrictions on Goods Bound for Gaza Strip” (Washington Post, 6/18/10). (CNN—6/17/10—at least attributed the claim in its “Israel to Ease Blockade of Gaza, Cabinet Says.”)
But corporate news coverage in the United States omitted an important aspect of the story that undermines the narrative that Israel is “easing” its blockade of Gaza. The Israeli daily Ha’aretz (6/17/10) reports:
The prime minister’s office announced on Thursday that the security cabinet had agreed to relax Israel’s blockade on the Gaza Strip, but as it turns out, no binding decision was ever made during the cabinet meeting.
The prime minister’s office issued a press release in English following the meeting, which was also sent to foreign diplomats, was substantially different than the Hebrew announcement–according to the English text, a decision was made to ease the blockade, but in the Hebrew text there was no mention of any such decision.
U.S. corporate media have apparently decided to ignore the Hebrew press release that told a far different story about the blockade of Gaza. Even if their correspondents in Jerusalem don’t speak Hebrew, the online English version of Ha’aretz reported the news about the dual statements loud and clear yesterday afternoon.
Only time will tell which statement is true and whether Israel is really easing its land blockade of Gaza. (The naval blockade will remain in place, according to the New York Times story on the Israeli statement.) Even if the English version were true, though, it doesn’t seem like it will squelch criticism of the blockade–Israeli human rights organization Gisha (Guardian, 6/17/10) called the announcement “cosmetic changes,” and said that “we need a policy that recognizes the rights of Palestinian residents of Gaza not just to consume but also to produce and to travel.” Such viewpoints, however, are unlikely to get much of a hearing in the U.S. press.
It’s all true! In a bold and generous show of good will, toothpaste is going to be squeezed someday through a crack in the wall to the West Bank. Then there is a straw’s thickness tunnel through which the toopaste will someday be passed under ground beneath Israel proper into Gaza for the Palestinians to get from the a public drinking fountain located on the broken marble floor of the quaint ruins of what was once a bank. This will be known as the East Bank. However, Palestinians attempting to use water from the Meidterranian beach for rinsing off the toothpaste will be shot. For as longs as the sixteen Israeli people killed by the thousand or so scud missles sent from Palestinian land onto Israel proper by the impatient Palestinians remain dead, the rest of the uneased blockade of Gaza will remain in force. The ball is clearly in the Palestinians’ court now to do something for Israel. Now the Palestinians should at least have the courtesy to say, “Thank you very much, Israel,” and then politely and prompltly die. The Palestinians are such ingrates!
I am a journalist who long has written about U.S. news media being controlled by the Israel lobby. I am retired and a free-lancer, and few see what I write on that subject because only a rare U.S. publication is willing to even hint at Israeli duplicity. With the exception of Helen Thomas, our news and press corps are stooges for Israel. As that continues, the Zionist knot around our throats tightens. – George Beres, 1955 graduate of Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
Are you sure the humanitiarn aid is not just a pretense to break the arms embargo . If the arms embargo is broken , wont the missles start coming into Israel again ?
Eric,
How many missiles come into Israel from Gaza,understand this ,Israel has enchroched upon the lands of Palestinians,then pushed them in a corner to die slowly or diappear,put yourself in a palestinians shoe see how it feels to be continuously demonised and humiliated at the hands of Israelis with guns and boots. and if some people want to send them aid you doubt that it could be missiles or arms,you dont give even an inch,dont you.
FYI; Obtuse Eric
how would you behave if we gentiles in New York City took military action to force all the Jews into one area into the Bronx and surround the area with check points and 40 ft concrete barriers. No clean water, no hydro, no food, no meds reguliar visists by thugs and killing your kids. Step out and your shot!
Why the Bronx?–You figure it out!
Fact: USA/Israel has become a host to a Ashkanazism infestation out of control.
We leanrt that on Sept 11 2001 attacks by Israel but too stupid not to go after the infestation mentioned :^/
George A…with the A standing for Antisemite. Nazi rhetoric about Jewish infestation/infection and blaming the Jews–oh, I’m sorry he’s really so PC, blaming Israel for the 9-11 attacks. We hear so often about the unjustified claims that anti-Zionism is really Antisemitism that people forget how much anti-Zionism really is Antisemitism under another name, but George’s comment should make it clear even to the most resistant of neutral observers that some anti-Zionism like his really is unadulterated Antisemitism. As for Nour’s comments, the infant mortality and life expectancy statistics for the Gaza strip are better than almost anyplace in the Arab world and the population has grown steadily, so they were hardly pushed into a corner and left to die. They might also have even more to eat if they hadn’t demolished those greenhouses after the Israelis withdrew. Israel should withdraw from the West Bank and there is lots to criticize about Israeli policies, but this exaggerated demonizing of Israel encourages the slide down the slippery slope from opposing Israeli policies to Antisemitism.
Helen Thomas was wrong to say the Jews should go home … she should have said the Jews who tell the lies should go home. Goebbels would be very proud of the Israeli propaganda machine and Hitler would have loved the way the U.S. media eats it up.
Zionism..equates with Nazism.. and Netayahu.. is a Hitlerite.. Yes..”Friends of Israel” have been Hoodwinked.. but for those who care about the Fate of the Palestinian people…We know that every utterance of the Zionist need to be taken with a large pinch of salt.
Fear freezes everybody. When people are afraid, reason does not hold much value. Folk just strike out at anything that seems to threaten. Evil has a way of making fear enjoyable. Yes, I know there are those that say Evil does not exist, so let us use it as a metaphor. I do not know when the Palestinians and the Israelis will work things out, but they will. Of that I am sure since no lie can live forever. And it is a Lie that they cannot work things out. That is the big Lie. These people have it within them to live in peace and harmony. They will work it out. I do knot know what to advise or what to pray for, but I do know that killing people only results in the seduction of violence clouding the will of the peacemaker. Thus, I suggest that when we comment on these events and these people, let us not uplift violence through violent language. Let us speak or comment to one another as we seek to be part of a process of peace and not a student of war. Remember, Evil has a way of making fear enjoyable.
If Iran is supporting Hamas with weapons why didn’t they use them against Israel during the assault on Gaza. As I understand it there were 1400 Palestinians killed and only 10 Israeli soldiers, eight by friendly fire. This tells me that there are no significant weapons being supplied by Iran.
stan,
antisemite!, antisemite!, antisemite!…….the answer to every and all questions that show israel in a negative light….reminds me of uncle leo on seinfeld…..and the palestinians have NOT been shoved into a corner!?….are you serious?….you make it sound like they’re on a mediterranean vacation………you are wayyyyyyy out of touch with reality….if it’s so great there, why haven’t more jews relocated to the gaza strip!!?
As long as two conflicting religions (Judaism and Islam) are allowed to live side by side and each continues to try to force their own religion on the other, it won’t matter about food, politics, schools or anything else. Religious fundamentalists will not accept some other religion’s dogma. Each will try to gain more land and more power so as to impose their religious “values”.
Unless someone more powerful than both, divides the land equitably and “governs” fairly the problem WILL continue for at least as long as the whole Crusader versus Islam thing has worn on.
i doubt conversion to islam is the People of Gaza’s main thoughts here. survival under primative conditions at best does little to calm anyone. But the Israili military likes its work just like any military. Just a joke in a lot of ways. the US attitude is more like play video game as they kill with state of the art weapons. it is all the rage now. kill by remote control. tough on the poor though. must be nice to kill and not have blood on yer hands. oh what the hell the world is crowded anyway and over population is the world main problem. NO SHORTAGE of people here, lol. If we had space instead of crowding maybe we wouldn’t butt heads with each other all the time. I am not going to be a savior to the world but i will root for the underdog as i was so outraged by Hitler’s actions!! Now the legacy has been passed on as well as all the things we learned from Hitler..OH YES we learned a lot!! How to manipulate and control people. How to hate! I think there is no hate worse than a holocost survivor or relative of such. The Jews have made it IMPOSSIBLE for them to be under anyone elses thumb. There might be a cost for such security. Can’t buy or impose love and it can get lonely at the top. Just hoping is all.
those who single out Israel for unique criticism not directed against countries with far worse human rights records are themselves guilty of international bigotry. . . . when the Jewish nation is the only one criticized for faults that are far worse among other nations, such criticism crosses the line from fair to foul, from acceptable to anti-Semitic, or for want of a better word All-things-jewish,it is a manifestation of selective morality, it has nothing to do with morality or humanism, it is pure hatred hiding behind morality………….it is the ugliest form of anti semitism, it is teflon in nature and design, it seems actually that there is enough of this teflon in the western world to provide saucepans to the entire universe for a good number of years
A Scenario/?analogy-A family of five people-a husband and wife, two boys and a daughter- is “asked” by the government to provide housing for one person. One of the children’ s rooms is given to the person. (The home has six rooms-three bedrooms, a living room. a dining room, one bathroom and a kitchen.) After a few months the person’s mother and father are placed in the home- another room gone. The person marries. The spouse and the spouse ‘s three children are placed in the home. Because of different religious practices and the sleeping arrangements, there are times when the one group cannot use/share the space in the home. So………………..
The story could go on and on with water use problems, more housing situations, more relatives until the “home owners are confined to one room with very restricted use of “their” entrances and exits, living room, dining room, kitchen(cooking and water supply) or bathroom(water supply).
I am sure the analogy is clear.