PrintApril 7, 2010
NYT Hails Palestinian Switch to Terrorism-Lite
In its April 7 edition, the New York Times features an article by Jerusalem bureau chief Ethan Bronner about a switch by Palestinians to a new strategy away from violence and "armed struggle" to "peaceful pressure," including "unarmed protest marches," and a boycott of Israeli goods produced in West Bank settlements. ("Palestinians Try Less Violent Path to Resistance", front page.)
The article, prominently displayed above the fold of the front page with a four-column picture of Palestinians planting trees to assert claims to West Bank lands, notes that Rajmoahn Gandhi, the grandson of the Indian independence leader, Mahatma Gandhi, just visited Bilin, a Palestinian village with a weekly protest march, and that Martin Luther King III is coming to speak at a conference on non-violence.
It all seems so calm and peaceful. In Bronner's report, only Israeli military authorities are left to grouse that Palestinian demonstrations aren't exactly non-violent since they often involve stone-throwing and attacks on Israel's security barrier. But that's an Israeli view -- not Bronner's.
What is really remarkable about Bronner's piece is his total failure to mention the latest monthly report by Shin Bet, Israel's security service, which paints a starkly different picture of Palestinian tactics.
According to Shin Bet, there was a sharp escalation in violent attacks by Palestinians in March -- 125 such incidents, compared with 53 in February.
Rising violence by Palestinians was especially notable in Jerusalem, which saw 27 attacks, compared with just 2 in February.
Along the Gaza border, there were 36 attacks in March, compared with 13 in February. The latest attacks from Gaza also claimed 3 lives -- 2 Israeli soldiers and a Thai worker on an Israeli farm. Bronner's piece totally ignores Hamas-ruled Gaza and its less than Gandhiesque tactics and provocations.
While Gaza terrorists rely on rockets and mortar shells for their cross-border attacks, Palestinian protesters in the West Bank prefer hurling firebombs, sniper fire and stone-throwing as their less than peaceful weapons.
Gaza actually ran a distant second in violent attacks in March -- 89 of the 125 attacks occurred in the West Bank and Jerusalem
When Shin Bet published its March report last week, the New York Times didn't put it on the front page. In fact, it ignored it. And Bronner, in his April 7 article, again hides it from Times readers -- presumably because it would spoil his roseate view of Palestinians as prospective disciples of Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.
