FLOTILLA Cover-up: The New York Times Accused

by David Morris
For the past month, the alternative media have sought concrete evidence that the mainstream U.S. media, including the New York Times, willfully aided Israel’s cover-up of information about their Gaza flotilla attack.

Prima facie evidence of their complicity is abundant.

The Times’ role in the cover-up ranged from suppression of facts and failure to follow leads that might (and did) contradict Israel’s version of the massacre, to serving as a shameless conduit for Israeli propaganda. The Times persisted in publishing and republishing the official line of Israel and became a virtual bulletin board for crackpot opinions and commentary. A prime example is Michael Oren’s “An Assault on Israel, Cloaked in Peace,” arguing delusionally that this humanitarian effort was an “act of aggression” that threatened the very nation of Israel.

The news we Americans received on the massacre seemed written by an Israeli propaganda minister — in fact, some of it was. The Israeli army generously provided our media with a carefully edited video of their attack, which major news outlets dutifully broadcasted.

Long-distance images of civilians defending themselves against commando killers (including a woman brandishing a deck chair) were presented as evidence of armed resistance. The imprisonment in Gaza of an Israeli soldier four years ago was cited as justification for executing nine peace activists, two shot in the back of the head at point-blank range.

Alternative media journalists like Philip Weiss (Mondoweiss), Glenn Greenwald (Salon), and yours truly (USMediaAndIsrael.com) provide examples of the Times’ stonewalling and disinformation. James North on Mondoweiss, for example, writes about the aftermath of Israel’s illegal detainment of hundreds of peace activists and their video evidence. As Israel began releasing the prisoners, the Times’ legion of reporters failed to interview a single flotilla member to get their version of the atrocity. As North wrote, this unconscionable delay gave “Israel’s version of the deadly raid time to harden.”

The May 31 Times reported “Israeli officials said that international law allows for the capture of naval vessels in international waters…” Israeli officials said. Exactly. With convenient unprofessionalism, the Times published Israel’s claim at face value, offering no comment or analysis by experts in international law. In fact (and as the Times must have known), independent experts call the attack “flagrantly illegal.”

When the Times finally did report something not fed to them by Israel, their front page story lamented the public relations catastrophe for Israel, not the murder of nine peace activists nor the immense suffering caused by the illegal siege of Gaza.

On the contrary, Times reporter Isabel Kershner writes, “Israel says it allows enough basic supplies through crossings to prevent an acute humanitarian crisis.” Again, the paper reported this cruel lie citing only Israeli propaganda as their source (“Israel says…”). No editor of the NY Times would allow such sloppy journalism — unless directed to do so by top management.

The NY Times has a long history of pro-Israel reporting of events in the Middle East. One notable illustration is their coverage of Israel’s 1967 attack on the USS Liberty that killed and wounded over 200 American sailors. The Times’ only account of this deliberate, hour-long assault on a U.S. ship — a brief summary buried on page 19 of the paper.

The question is who within the New York Times ordered the most recent journalistic stonewalling and submission to Israeli interests. Might it be publisher/owner Arthur Sulzberger, Jr.? Rank-and-file employees and journalists at the Times must be truly embarrassed, even shamed by their employer’s willful deception of American readers.

We ask that someone come forward.
http://intifada-palestine.com/2010/07/flotilla-cover-up-the-new-york-times-accused/

ISRAEL UP TO NO GOOD ON KIDNAPPING PROPAGANDA

This looks very serious, Israel is up to NO good!! We will see how this shakes out, but I see trouble coming....

Unusual terror warning issued Tuesday meant to urge Israelis to locate their relatives in Sinai, Head of Counter-Terrorism Bureau says; for time being, no confirmation of abduction despite rumors, but new intelligence shows terror cell ready for action

I've just read this so called "frantic terror alert" issued by the Zionists in full HERE. Claiming that "all" Israelis in the Sinai must return to Israel immediately due to the "threat "of being kidnapped. I don’t buy this for one minute, not one second, not one nano second!

REMEMBER DUBAI AND THE FAKE IDENTITIES

This is Israel planning another attack on Gaza, that is my fear. Using a fake threat on a fake person or people. I find it odd that Israel claims to have all this intel:

"New and up-to-date intelligence information accumulated, and it points to a terror cell completing its preparations, marking a target, receiving the green light, and carrying out the act – or en route to carrying it out," he said. "It's hard to know whether the cell is en route to the area, or whether it already carried out the operation."

And yet they have no clue “if” it’s happened or not, nor whom the so called “target” is. This is a load of bollox. The entire thing reeks of propaganda Zionist bullshit. I believe this is Israel attempting to scare the shite out of their citizens on holiday in Egypt so they all come home to prison Israel immediately, Why? So that they can then all be safe inside prison Israel before Israel launches its next genocide on Gaza.

And don’t even get me started on them already (yawn) blaming Hamas for this supposed kidnapping (in Egypt no less!) that no one can confirm yet……..and if it IS confirmed by “Israel” would anyone in their right mind believe it after what they just did in Dubai????? Seriously!! Israel the “truth tellers” mi arse! Known liars extraordinaire, yet we are to believe them? Even if they claim someone is “missing” it would most likely be some fake non –existent person with a fake Israeli passport and fake Israeli identity. The curse of Dubai.

And what of the utter fabrication that Hamas is going to actually carry some Israeli on vacation in Egypt through a tunnel into Gaza. I’d sooner believe in the tooth fairy!

Nuriel added that Israel believes that whatever organization is behind the latest abduction warning, it is being operated by Hamas, adding that an abducted Israeli may end up being transferred to Gaza via Rafah's tunnels

Anyone remember that Egyptian wall that is all but complete? Or not to mention the near impossible task of getting yourself, not to mention yourself with a hostage, all the way from that Egyptian resort to somewhere near Rafah where all those tunnels are. Just you go yourself and try to get to Gaza, the Egyptian security is every ten feet on all roads leading to Rafah area. So, that leaves walking through ALL that desert, with….. a hostage………. easily seen by any chopper or surveillance aircraft from above.

People need to be realistic here, who has something to gain from this? Hamas who is trying to keep things calm, Hamas who has no weapons except homemade rockets, and not very many of them? Or Israel who has the 4th largest army in the world who has been looking for any excuse to finish the job it started in Gaza of taking out Hamas so Gaza can be handed over to Abbas and Fatah so Israel can get a sweet deal and land grab before the two state solution is rammed down their throats by the US. This is like Bush #1 who failed to take out Saddam, then came Bush #2 (a fitting analogy) to finish Daddy’s plan by hook or crook, or using fake information on WMD’s. OR Like fake information on a fake kidnapping of a fake non-existant Israeli in Sinai.

I’m telling you Israel is up to something here, the world must not fall for this nonsense. Remember Goldstone, the war crimes, the ethnic cleaning of Jerusalem, the recent announcement of Israel passing laws to expel thousands of Palestinians from the West Bank. Who’s the aggressor here, who is the attacker, who has the most to gain from another war? Only one answer to that question, ISRAEL.
http://irish4palestine.blogspot.com/2010/04/israel-up-to-no-good-on-kidnapping.html

Zionist Propaganda Body Seeks Volunteers to Distort Wikipedia Input on ME

Zionist Web

Occupied Jerusalem: 21 November, 2009

by Khalid Amayreh

A Zionist hasbara (propaganda) body based in North America is trying to recruit “volunteers” whose main job is to distort the input of the internet’s most visited websites in Israel’s favor.

Propaganda efforts are reportedly focused on popular sites such as Wikipedia, the huge on-line encyclopedia which can be edited by anyone

CAMERA, which calls itself a “committee for accuracy in Middle East reporting in America,” already has a team of dozens of paid Jewish propagandists who regularly and often scandalously distort basic data pertaining to such themes as Israeli apartheid, Zionism and its ideological similarity to Nazism, Israeli state terror and ill-treatment of Palestinians as well as other issues related to the Israeli Palestinian conflict.

Recently CAMERA sent a circular to potential Zionist propagandists, asking them to help ensure a pro-Israeli bias in the internet.

“The idea behind Wikipedia is that if thousands of well-meaning and informed volunteers collaborate on an online encyclopedia, the result would be more accurate, up-to-date and inclusive than any print encyclopedia could possibly be.”

The circular went on: “CAMERA seeks 10 volunteers to help us keep Israel-related entries on Wikipedia from becoming tainted by anti-Israel editors. All it takes to be an effective volunteer is a basic comfort level with computers. Call or email me, and I will train you on how to become a volunteer Wikipedia editor.”

Reputed for its notoriously mendacious and inaccurate input, CAMERA has consistently sought to exonerate the Israeli occupation forces of war crimes committed against innocent civilians especially in the Gaza Strip.

Acting as a propaganda mouthpiece for the Israeli occupation army, the group, relying on questionable and often concocted statements by Israeli army spokespersons, argued on many occasions that the widespread killing of Palestinian civilians by the Israeli army occurred by mistake and that measures were often taken to minimize civilian casualties.

Earlier this year, the Israeli army carried out a virtually genocidal onslaught against the nearly totally unprotected Gaza Strip, killing and maiming thousands of innocent civilians, including hundreds of children.

Moreover, a sustained aerial bombing by the Israeli air force destroyed more than six thousand Palestinian homes and hundreds of public buildings including more than a hundred mosques.

CAMERA, whose staff includes former Israeli Shine Beth’ officials, attacked the recently-published Goldstone report, accusing the former South African Judge, who is Jewish, of reporting “inaccurate information.”

The Goldstone report, based on meticulously authenticated data obtained first-hand testimonies from victims, accused the Israeli forces of knowingly and deliberately committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during the 21-day onslaught.

The data contained in the Goldstone report were corroborated by testimonies made by Israeli soldiers who took part in the winter onslaught.Israel, apparently fearing international condemnation, had refused to cooperate with the Goldstone commission.


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