Palestine – Hark the Herald Devil Sings
Regrettably the Sydney Morning Herald seems to be going the way of a growing number of media outlets that publish factually inaccurate or misleading statements and analysis on the Jewish-Arab conflict – which still defies resolution after 130 years of trying.
In its recent editorial “Mid East Peace: a time to speak” the Herald has published inaccuracies, innuendo, amateur analysis and comment designed to mislead or misinform.
Take the following:
- “The Obama administration’s effort to get the Israelis and Palestinians back into direct negotiations, helped with a bribe to Israel of new military gear in return for a 90- day freeze on settlements in the conquered territories, has foundered.”
The suggestion that a “bribe” was offered and accepted is scurrilous. There were negotiations between Secretary of State Clinton and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu but President Obama nixed those negotiations by refusing to make any offers in writing when confirmation was demanded by Israel.
- “International patience is fast running out. Brazil and Argentina have recognised a sovereign state of Palestine; the Europeans are threatening to follow.”
It might have helped readers if the Herald had added that Brazil and Argentina’s recognition involved a state of Palestine within the 1967 armistice lines – which means that 500000 Jews will have to leave their homes and businesses. Brazil and Argentina’s endorsement of this Nazi “Judenrein” policy was apparently thought not important enough to point out to its readers.
As to the Europeans the following news item appeared one week before the Herald’s editorial:
“The EU will not recognise changes to pre-1967 borders, including with regard to Jerusalem, other than agreed by the parties.
“This could include territorial swaps,” it says, without further comment in what a diplomat said was the first such reference by the EU.
It also demands that a way be found to resolve the status of Jerusalem ” as the future capital of two states” and calls for a just solution to the refugee problem.
What source did the Herald rely on for its claim?
- Or Palestinians may give up on the idea of their own state, and insist on a two-nation, single state in the original Palestine mandate.”
The Herald infers the location of the their own State is agreed upon between the Palestinian Arabs – which is inaccurate. The Gazan Arabs want their own state to include Israel, whilst the West Bank Arabs want their own state to exclude Israel and also those 500000 Jews who currently live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
The original Palestine mandate contained what is today called Jordan – which comprised 78% of the territory of “Palestine”. Is the Herald privy to information that the Palestinians have designs on Jordan as part of the location for its two-nation single state?
..... and my thoughts won't make you happy. Compliments of the Season anyway.
- “The key blockage, for Israel’s Western friends, is its own politics. Hamas can be tackled further downstream”
The Palestinian Arabs do not have a unified Government that can negotiate a final agreement with Israel. Hamas and the Palestinian Authority are unable to decide who should govern the Palestinian Arabs after 3 years of internecine struggle. Abbas remains the unelected and unconstitutional President of the Palestinian Authority (PA). The Fayyad government of the PA is unelected. Hamas is a declared terrorist organization and has been duly elected to govern in Gaza.
Israel has a democratically elected Government that can enter into and make binding commitments but has no corresponding entity on the other side that can do the same.
On what source does the Herald rely to assert that Israel’s own politics – not the Palestinian Arabs split politics – is the key blockage for Israel‘s western friends?
Why should Israel tackle Hamas downstream? Hamas has to be confronted and dealt with in the context of any final settlement or such purported settlement will not be an end to the conflict.
Won’t doing nothing about Hamas now lead to precisely the outcome the Herald referred to in this very editorial :
“a messy one and two half-states, Israel plus a rump Palestine on the West Bank and a Hamas-ruled Gaza propped up by Iran.”
Is the Herald serious that Israel commit this act of national suicide by dealing with the PA now and put Hamas off for another day?
- “The debate in Washington is now about how tough to be with Israel, to try to force the mainstream into a consensus decision. A bit of tough support from a key ally might have helped the Americans Instead, Rudd’s public appearances were a feel-good profession of Australian support for Israel.”
A sweeping statement on Washington with not one bit of evidence or analysis to support it.
On the other hand there is clear evidence that the PA and Hamas are unable to settle their differences and steadfastly refuse to recognize Israel as the Jewish National Home.
How can Washington being tough with Israel bring any breakthroughs in these Palestinian Arab logjams?
If America is to get tough with anyone surely it would be with the Palestinian Arab side – to get their act together and acknowledge that the Jewish state is a reality and is here to stay.
Good on Rudd. If the Herald’s editorial writer is right on Washington’s current stance – then Australia would be foolish to be part of it.
- “Rudd made a distasteful joke about Menachem Begin carrying out ”some interior redesign” of Jerusalem’s King David Hotel – referring to a terrorist bombing in 1946 that killed 91 people.”
(i) The King David Hotel was the headquarters of the British Army – a legitimate target for attack.
(ii) Warnings were given to clear the hotel but were ignored by the British.
(iii) To conclude that the attack was a “terrorist bombing” when the intent was to target a military installation
and not the civilian population – is outrageous.
- Has Rudd really has got [sic] it as a diplomat? Perhaps WikiLeaks will one day reveal that he made a more appropriate pitch in private.”
I would suggest the Herald not worry about Rudd and Wikileaks.
The Herald needs to worry about its journalists who write such nonsense as this skewed and inaccurate editorial.
Maybe in the spirit of openness and transparency being lately espoused by the Herald in its ongoing exclusive releases from Wikileaks – the Herald might tell us
(i) who wrote the editorial
(ii) the qualifications of the person writing the editorial
(iii) who checked the editorial for its accuracy before publication
At this festive time of goodwill and cheer the Herald has clearly displayed that this editorial is lacking in both.
David Singer is a Sydney Lawyer and Foundation Member of the International Analysts Network
#Maree
I would appreciate your elaborating on your comment:
“There is so much wrong with this article that it is exhausting to even contemplate pointing out the actual facts.”
Hopefully you are now over your exhaustion after having had 5 days to recuperate since making this stupid and inane comment and even more hopefully you might have gained enough strength to be ready to point out just three examples of what you claim is wrong with my article,
C’mon Maree – enough of the racist rant. Please focus on a discussion of my article.
What have I got wrong?
Black is white and white is black. There is so much wrong with this article that it is exhausting to even contemplate pointing out the actual facts. People all over the world can now see for themselves via the internet that the Israeli government is run by racist religious fanatics and a Moldovian night club bouncer. Rabbi’s are warning Jews not to rent to Arabs, and their wives are warning young women not to go out with, or even work with Arab people. They are even boycotting a supermarket that hires Arabs.
No doubt the Australian newspaper with it’s right wing zionist commentators will continue to support Israel, but the Australian public are becoming more aware of the plight of the Palestinians and no amount of ridiculous “anti-semitic” charges will turn the tide. It would be refreshing to read an article by a Jewish writer who can acknowledge that Palestinians are human too.
The S.M.H. has become nothing more than a second-class, left-populist rag whose “writers” come from the Goebbels’ school of propaganda.
As to the minor rant of LP above: s/he probably prefers her soi-disant “billions of my tax dollars” [sic] to go towards the Jihadist Victory Mosque which is being built on top the remains of American victims at Ground Zero.
#LP
You only question one of the Herald’s inaccurate or misleading statements that I raised in my article.
Does that you mean you agree the rest were inaccurate or misleading?
The only one you question is the attack on the King David Hotel. It housed not only the British Army Headquarters but also the British Administration. It was a legitimate military target. Had the British not ignored calls to vacate the building the tragedy that occurred would have been greatly lessened.
Civilians unfortunately become innocent victims when military targets are attacked.
Would you call the multitude of civilian deaths caused during the course of US attacks on military targets in Iraq and Afghanistan -” terrorism”?
The facts LP seems to ignore are that Israel does include Gaza and the West Bank yet it permits its arab residents to occupy these areas. As a US citizen you should be proud that one of the very few domestic and international policies of not only Obama but also previous US presidents of recent decades, has been to support Israel. The US makes a bad habit of backing losers with tax payers money, Israel is the exception.
Another sad rant from someone who won’t be happy until the borders of Israel include the West Bank and Gaza, and the citizens one and all take a loyalty oath to the Torah. Mr. Singer does seem to have the ignoble distinction of trying to prove a moral justification for the terrorist attack on the King David Hotel. Perhaps he also believes that the Stern Gang were freedom fighters. Well Mr. Singer, as a U.S. citizen I am sick to death of watching billions of my tax dollars, and those my children will have to pay poured into the economy of Israel, with a negative return to the U.S. Given the amount of money we pay, when President Obama said stop the settlements Netanyahu should have saluted crisply.
Has this been sent to the SMH ??
If not, it should be