Coverage of the Israeli commando attack on the so-called "peace" flotilla in the mainstream press has failed miserably in disseminating the facts and filling in the blanks about the nature of the organization behind the flotilla as well as some of the people who were aboard that ship.

Joel Mowbray writing in the Washington Times:

As the mainstream media told the story, a freedom-loving band of peace activists was stormed by armed Israeli commandos, resulting in the deaths of at least nine passengers. What this narrative ignores, however, is the nature of the organizers and the mission itself. The people behind the so-called Freedom Flotilla have a long history with terrorists, including al Qaeda. One of the primary sponsors, the Turkish Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH), was identified by the CIA as far back as 1996 as a terrorist-tied entity with links to Iran, and French magistrate Jean-Louis Brugiere testified that IHH played an "important role" in the failed al Qaeda "millennium plot" in the United States in late 1999.

Also missing from mainstream media coverage was that supplies from the flotilla could have been transported from an Israeli port by truck, after inspection, but that offer was flatly rejected. The reasoning was transparent, considering that flotilla spokeswoman Greta Berlin announced last week to Agence France-Press, "This mission is not about delivering humanitarian supplies, it's about breaking Israel's siege."

Most tellingly, flotilla passengers were seen on Al Jazeera last week chanting, "Khyber, Khyber," a favorite chant of jihadists because it recalls a battle where Muhammad's army is said to have killed large numbers of Jews.

Had the mainstream media been truly brave, outlets could have given full context, namely that the blockade of Gaza targets the Hamas government and is a joint enterprise of both Israel and Egypt.

It's hard to get a story right when you have an agenda to service.

Hat Tip: Ed Lasky