Most Popular Choices
Share on Facebook 37 Printer Friendly Page More Sharing
OpEdNews Op Eds    H2'ed 9/11/11

NY Times ignores Israeli killing of Egyptians in its coverage of demos against embassy

By       (Page 1 of 1 pages)   4 comments
Follow Me on Twitter     Message Alison Weir
Become a Fan
Gaza. Photo by Alison Weir
Gaza. Photo by Alison Weir
(Image by my)
  Details   DMCA

Yesterday's New York Times front-page story on Egyptian protests against the Israeli embassy largely neglects a primary cause of the anger: Israeli forces' killing of five Egyptian policemen. Egyptian anger over these deaths grew even greater when Israel's defense minister Ehud Barak refused to apologize.

The story is co-written by Ethan Bronner, who is the Times' Jerusalem Bureau Chief and is based in Israel, not Egypt. The Times fails to disclose that Bronner's son is in the Israeli military (and that Mr. Bronner is living in a house Israel confiscated from Palestinians).

Only in the third-to-last paragraph of the article, which emphasizes Israeli victimization, does the Times mention that an "episode" that may be related to the Egyptian protests is the "accidental Israeli shooting of at least three Egyptian soldiers inside their territory..."

The Times fails to report that the Egyptians were not just shot, they were killed; that most reports call the victims "security personnel" or policemen (i.e. civilians), not soldiers; and that the number is six,* not three.

It is noteworthy that the Times' doesn't even bother to discover the number of Egyptians killed, content with simply saying "at least." Over two weeks after the deaths the precise number should not be difficult to ascertain. It is hard to imagine Mr. Bronner being so blithe about Israeli deaths, which the Times covers at disproportionately high rates.

The Times provides no information about these Egyptian deaths: there are no names, no interviews with grieving families, no descriptions of their agony, no photographs. Their killing is simply called "accidental;" an adjective it is difficult to recall Mr. Bronner ever using to describe the deaths of Israelis.

The Times also fails to include the fact that Israeli forces then killed 14 Gazans, including two toddlers and a 13-year old (and injured at least 50), whom they chose to hold responsible for a lethal border attack by unknown gunmen against Israel, and that in the past two weeks Israeli air strikes have killed 9 more Palestinians, including a 13-year-old. In the past few days Israeli forces have abducted at least 5 Palestinians, fired on non-violent protesters in Palestinian villages, and demolished Palestinian homes, wells, and agricultural land.

Such Israeli actions have long outraged Egyptians living next door. However, thanks to such filtered reporting by the Times and others, Americans almost never learn of them. Instead, we just hear about Israel, which has the third to fifth most powerful military in the world, once again being victimized by attackers.

Since the Times' also almost never reports that Americans are Israel's number one funder, giving more US tax money to Israel than to any other country, despite Israel's wealth and diminutive size, many Americans fail to understand the growing hostility against the US created by our tax money to Israel.

As we remember September 11th, we need to learn about the fundamental source of anger against the US. But don't look to the New York Times to tell us.

#

* The number of Egyptians killed in the incident was originally five. On Sept 10th another person who had been shot by Israeli forces August 18th died, Emad Abdul Malak, bringing the total to six.

Must Read 4   Well Said 2   Supported 2  
Rate It | View Ratings

Alison Weir Social Media Pages: Facebook page url on login Profile not filled in       Twitter page url on login Profile not filled in       Linkedin page url on login Profile not filled in       Instagram page url on login Profile not filled in

Executive Director of If Americans Knew-- http://ifamericansknew.org/ and President of Council for the National Interest http://www.councilforthenationalinterest.org/
Go To Commenting
The views expressed herein are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of this website or its editors.
Follow Me on Twitter     Writers Guidelines

 
Contact AuthorContact Author Contact EditorContact Editor Author PageView Authors' Articles
Support OpEdNews

OpEdNews depends upon can't survive without your help.

If you value this article and the work of OpEdNews, please either Donate or Purchase a premium membership.

STAY IN THE KNOW
If you've enjoyed this, sign up for our daily or weekly newsletter to get lots of great progressive content.
Daily Weekly     OpEd News Newsletter
Name
Email
   (Opens new browser window)
 

Most Popular Articles by this Author:     (View All Most Popular Articles by this Author)

NY Times ignores Israeli killing of Egyptians in its coverage of demos against embassy

Senate passes $38 billion to Israel -- next step House of Representatives

NY Times & Ethan Bronner ignore Israeli killing of Egyptians

Israel's Flotilla "Investigation" - Accused Murderer Chooses Own Jury; Court Reporter is Family Member

Israeli Assassinations and American Presidents

To View Comments or Join the Conversation:

Tell A Friend