HonestReporting.org
has a good round up:
The BBC, as is all too often the case, displays its bias in its Crisis in pictures feature, where Lebanese civilians are "killed" by Israeli air strikes while Israelis simply "die" as a result of Hezbollah attacks.
The BBC's sympathies were broadcast by Nick Thorpe on BBC Radio and transcribed on to BBC Online where he describes his journey through Israel to Lebanon: "Driving down Highway 60 - the spine of the superstructure Israel has built on the West Bank - one understands the resentment and the sense of oppression the Palestinians feel. Smart, middle-class Israeli settlements have sprung up on virgin hillsides, watered by springs often diverted from Palestinian villages. Tunnels and fences have been erected by the occupier to keep Palestinians away from Israeli roads, Israeli settlements and Israeli soldiers. Increasingly confined by barriers and checkpoints into little reservations, it is little wonder that Palestinians applaud Sheikh Nasrallah, the spiritual head of the Hezbollah, when he calls for the release of some of the thousands of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel."
Comments to BBC Complaints.
Ignoring the long-term strategic threats posed by both Hezbollah and its Iranian backers to both Israel and the wider world, Muqtedar Kahn claims in the Chicago Tribune that "Israel easily could have engaged in a prisoner exchange with Hamas and Hezbollah, as it has done several times in the past, and the matter would have ended there."
Letters to the Chicago Tribune.
Despite Hezbollah TV station Al-Manar's intended purpose as a propaganda machine to spread anti-Semitic incitement, the Committee to Protect Journalists criticizes Israel for attacking the station. The Jerusalem Post also reports that Israel will leave the International Federation of Journalists following the organization's statement that the Israeli attack on Al-Manar was against the principle of freedom of the press. Click here to see the flaws in the CPJ and IFJ reasoning.
RECOMMENDED READING AND ANALYSIS
The Washington Times calls for Israel to be given time to complete its mission: "time to root out the weapons caches stockpiled in private homes; time to hit the rocket and missile-launching sites and terrorist training camps Hezbollah has established throughout Lebanon; and time to hunt down the jihadists in the Bekaa Valley and elsewhere whose life's work is to destroy the Jewish state."
The editorial continues: "It is no exaggeration to say that, if Hezbollah is severely weakened, the biggest long-term beneficiaries will be the great majority of Lebanese -- Muslim and Christian alike -- who have seen their nation dragged into a war with Israel which they want no part of in order to serve the malevolent purposes of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Syrian President Bashar Assad."
The LA Times places the blame squarely on Hezbollah: "MAKE NO MISTAKE ABOUT IT: Responsibility for the escalating carnage in Lebanon and northern Israel lies with one side, and one side only. And that is Hezbollah, the Islamist militant party, along with its Syrian and Iranian backers. Reasonable minds can differ on the strategic wisdom of the Israeli response, but there can be no doubt about the blame for the mounting death toll on both sides of the border."
A number of UK newspapers have called for action against Iran, including the Daily Telegraph and Dore Gold, who argue that "Teheran is sponsoring terrorist movements on Israel's borders as part of its wider strategy of regional encirclement. As long as the mullahs go unchecked, neither Israel, nor Palestine, nor Lebanon will be secure."
This sentiment is echoed by Anton La Guardia in the Daily Telegraph who notes that "Lebanon has become the battleground between pro-western and radical Islamic forces. Few governments, even Arab states, want to see Hizbollah win the contest", while the Times of London calls for international action to help Lebanon evict Hezbollah. In the same paper, Tim Hames states that "In the dreadful circumstances, Mr Olmert has been "proportionate" and "balanced", as is acknowledged by the United States and Britain and, privately, officials in Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia."
The Australian declares: "If there was ever any doubt that Israel's response to Hezbollah's hail of rockets was proportionate to the threat they pose to Israeli security, it has been dispelled by attacks launched from southern Lebanon deep into Israel."
Give Israel time to complete the mission, Editorial, The Washington Times
Response and responsibility, Editorial, LA Times
Israel's response is self-defence, Editorial, The Australian
The ayatollahs are the real enemies of Israel, Editorial, Daily Telegraph
Iran plans to dominate the Middle East, Dore Gold, Daily Telegraph
Israel fights West's cause against radical Islam, Anton La Guardia, Daily Telegraph
More than words, Editorial, The Times
The Middle East isn't on the brink of war. It's on the brink of catastrophe, Tim Hames, The Times
-----------------------
More and more, the kidnappings seem to have been a gross miscalculation by Iran and Syria. They were expecting a quick reprisal and prisoner exchange. Thereby gaining legitimacy for Hezbollah and Hamas in the eyes of their own people and the world.
If it turns out that Israel does take out Syria's tanks or some other major resource not easily replaced, it will rewrite the agenda for several years to come - and potentially restore Israel's deterrant ability.
The BBC, as is all too often the case, displays its bias in its Crisis in pictures feature, where Lebanese civilians are "killed" by Israeli air strikes while Israelis simply "die" as a result of Hezbollah attacks.
The BBC's sympathies were broadcast by Nick Thorpe on BBC Radio and transcribed on to BBC Online where he describes his journey through Israel to Lebanon: "Driving down Highway 60 - the spine of the superstructure Israel has built on the West Bank - one understands the resentment and the sense of oppression the Palestinians feel. Smart, middle-class Israeli settlements have sprung up on virgin hillsides, watered by springs often diverted from Palestinian villages. Tunnels and fences have been erected by the occupier to keep Palestinians away from Israeli roads, Israeli settlements and Israeli soldiers. Increasingly confined by barriers and checkpoints into little reservations, it is little wonder that Palestinians applaud Sheikh Nasrallah, the spiritual head of the Hezbollah, when he calls for the release of some of the thousands of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel."
Comments to BBC Complaints.
Ignoring the long-term strategic threats posed by both Hezbollah and its Iranian backers to both Israel and the wider world, Muqtedar Kahn claims in the Chicago Tribune that "Israel easily could have engaged in a prisoner exchange with Hamas and Hezbollah, as it has done several times in the past, and the matter would have ended there."
Letters to the Chicago Tribune.
Despite Hezbollah TV station Al-Manar's intended purpose as a propaganda machine to spread anti-Semitic incitement, the Committee to Protect Journalists criticizes Israel for attacking the station. The Jerusalem Post also reports that Israel will leave the International Federation of Journalists following the organization's statement that the Israeli attack on Al-Manar was against the principle of freedom of the press. Click here to see the flaws in the CPJ and IFJ reasoning.
RECOMMENDED READING AND ANALYSIS
The Washington Times calls for Israel to be given time to complete its mission: "time to root out the weapons caches stockpiled in private homes; time to hit the rocket and missile-launching sites and terrorist training camps Hezbollah has established throughout Lebanon; and time to hunt down the jihadists in the Bekaa Valley and elsewhere whose life's work is to destroy the Jewish state."
The editorial continues: "It is no exaggeration to say that, if Hezbollah is severely weakened, the biggest long-term beneficiaries will be the great majority of Lebanese -- Muslim and Christian alike -- who have seen their nation dragged into a war with Israel which they want no part of in order to serve the malevolent purposes of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Syrian President Bashar Assad."
The LA Times places the blame squarely on Hezbollah: "MAKE NO MISTAKE ABOUT IT: Responsibility for the escalating carnage in Lebanon and northern Israel lies with one side, and one side only. And that is Hezbollah, the Islamist militant party, along with its Syrian and Iranian backers. Reasonable minds can differ on the strategic wisdom of the Israeli response, but there can be no doubt about the blame for the mounting death toll on both sides of the border."
A number of UK newspapers have called for action against Iran, including the Daily Telegraph and Dore Gold, who argue that "Teheran is sponsoring terrorist movements on Israel's borders as part of its wider strategy of regional encirclement. As long as the mullahs go unchecked, neither Israel, nor Palestine, nor Lebanon will be secure."
This sentiment is echoed by Anton La Guardia in the Daily Telegraph who notes that "Lebanon has become the battleground between pro-western and radical Islamic forces. Few governments, even Arab states, want to see Hizbollah win the contest", while the Times of London calls for international action to help Lebanon evict Hezbollah. In the same paper, Tim Hames states that "In the dreadful circumstances, Mr Olmert has been "proportionate" and "balanced", as is acknowledged by the United States and Britain and, privately, officials in Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia."
The Australian declares: "If there was ever any doubt that Israel's response to Hezbollah's hail of rockets was proportionate to the threat they pose to Israeli security, it has been dispelled by attacks launched from southern Lebanon deep into Israel."
Give Israel time to complete the mission, Editorial, The Washington Times
Response and responsibility, Editorial, LA Times
Israel's response is self-defence, Editorial, The Australian
The ayatollahs are the real enemies of Israel, Editorial, Daily Telegraph
Iran plans to dominate the Middle East, Dore Gold, Daily Telegraph
Israel fights West's cause against radical Islam, Anton La Guardia, Daily Telegraph
More than words, Editorial, The Times
The Middle East isn't on the brink of war. It's on the brink of catastrophe, Tim Hames, The Times
-----------------------
More and more, the kidnappings seem to have been a gross miscalculation by Iran and Syria. They were expecting a quick reprisal and prisoner exchange. Thereby gaining legitimacy for Hezbollah and Hamas in the eyes of their own people and the world.
If it turns out that Israel does take out Syria's tanks or some other major resource not easily replaced, it will rewrite the agenda for several years to come - and potentially restore Israel's deterrant ability.
posted by JCH | 3:01 PM
<< Home