IN AN ISRAEL HAYOM article headed Only Palestinians are 'martyrs', Kuwaiti journalist Abdullah al-Hadlaq writes that I am baffled by the international community's silence in the face of the crimes committed by Palestinian terrorists against the Israeli people. I am equally baffled by the international community's outcry against Israel's legal right to defend itself and its soldiers and against Israel's legitimate right to live and stand strong.
Al-Hadlaq adds Hundreds of thousands of Muslims are killed worldwide every day in wars and internal conflicts -- in Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Yemen, India, Pakistan, Myanmar, the Philippines, China, and Nepal -- but the defective Arab media does not refer to any one of the casualties by name or the title "shahid." Only when a Palestinian is killed, be it in battle or in a car accident or in a fight or when celebratory gunshots are fired at a wedding, does the Arab media applaud him and give him, falsely and deceptively, the name "shahid."
Al-Hadlaq chastises Arab media by asking Why, when Palestinian terrorists and murderers holding knives and rocks are killed by Israeli soldiers, who are forced to open fire in cases of legitimate self-defense, do these debased Arab media outlets twist the truth and call the Palestinian terrorists "shahids"?
The Kuwaiti writer's points are well made, but his focus is far too narrow.
It is not just the Arab or Muslim-controlled media - newspapers, tv, Web-based - that ignore the plight of Arabs and Muslims in, as Al-Hadid writes, Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Yemen, India, Pakistan, Myanmar, the Philippines, China, and Nepal. Syria the world knows about because it has the attention of the Big Powers (U.S. and Russia) and some lesser lights (U.K.) and because Iran is a major player with money, weapons, and personnel. Whenever Israel makes an incursion into Syrian airspace, that too makes news, brings additional condemnation on Israel - how dare it destroy munitions intended to be used against it!
Most Americans would be hard-pressed to know what is going on today in Yemen or Burma or even the Philippines. Admittedly, Americans, living in a huge country with its own problems, most of which emanate from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, tend to be less knowledgeable of "foreign affairs" than citizens of smaller states and minor islands. Provincial without a doubt.
But when it comes to "Palestine," the artificial state, U.S. media bows to its PR releases and writes headlines starting Israel blamed … in attack on, for killing Palestinian, for; frankly, for failing to die at the hands of a "Palestinian" terrorist with a gun, a knife, or a vehicle.
Admittedly, murders are all too common in the U.S. Black-on-black murders get only fleeting attention - and none of the black superstars (Jackson, Sharpton, et al) make an appearance; likewise latino-on-latino killings fail to make news for more than a day or two. The superstars only come out when a white kills a black or latino. A white cop kills a white person - there are far too many cop killings of all races - where are, who are, the superstars?.
No, Mr. Al-Hadlaq, its not just the Arab media that sees only "Palestinians" worthy of headlines and more than a column inch or two, hardly a filler.
On the other hand, it may be that, like black-on-black and latino-on-latino murders in the U.S., perhaps Muslim-on-Muslim killings in Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Yemen, India, Pakistan, Myanmar, the Philippines, China, and Nepal are too distant and too common the make headlines or to be worth 10 seconds of tv air time…In other world news….
'Course, the "Arab media" Al-Hadlaq criticizes could be picking up their information from the Israeli leftist media who, like their Arab cousins, delight in bashing the only country that gives them any freedom to challenge the government.
A Internet search for "journalist Abdullah al-Hadlaq" turns up other Israel-friendly and Arab media-critical articles.
