Can bad reporting be bad for your health?

Anyone wondering whether this is the case need look no further than Newsweek magazine, where a combination of lousy judgment and even lousier journalism, led to death, destruction and injury.

In a May 9 report, the once-venerable news magazine reported that US personnel at the Guantanomo Bay detention center had flushed a Koran down the toilet. The report was based on a single anonymous source who couldn’t personally verify the incident, but thought he might have seen it mentioned in a classified document of some sort.

The result was not long in coming. As Reuters described it:

The report sparked violent protests across the Muslim world -- from Afghanistan, where 16 were killed and more than 100 injured, to Pakistan, Indonesia and Gaza. In the past week the reported desecration was condemned in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, Malaysia and by the Arab League.

Moreover, in one fell swoop, Newsweek handed Islamist extremists new ammunition with which to stir up yet more anti-American and anti-Western sentiment.

After issuing a half-hearted apology on Sunday, the magazine came under intense criticism, and finally retracted the story on Monday.

This whole episode should serve as a lesson to journalists everywhere – it is a reminder of the incredible responsibility they bear to report the truth and to weigh the consequences of their actions.

Too often, and especially when it comes to Israel, journalists pounce on a story  because it suits their political beliefs, inevitably tossing facts to the wind and causing inestimable harm to innocent people. And then they rarely, if ever, acknowledge their mistakes.

Sure, Newsweek did apologize – but that is the exception which proves the rule. After all, how many times do major news outlets admit the errors of their ways? And even when they do, does it have any noticeable long-term effect on the substance of their reporting?

It would be nice to think that “NewsweekGate” will lead to a change in how journalists do their jobs – especially those covering the Middle East. Nice, but also most unlikely.

After George W. Bush’s recent hand-holding session with Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah, it seemed as if US-Saudi relations were back on track.

But now, much to the Saudis’ dismay, along comes a telling reminder of the desert kingdom’s continuing involvement in anti-American and anti-Western terror.

In a front-page article, the Washington Post reveals that most of the suicide bombers in Iraq hail from – you guessed it – Saudi Arabia.

The report notes that two counter-terrorism experts conducted independent research, scouring jihadist websites and collecting information regarding the identities of those carrying out lethal attacks against US forces in Iraq. The first researcher, Reuven Paz, published a report in March which revealed that of the 154 Arabs killed in Iraq in the previous six months in jihadist attacks, some 61 percent were Saudi Arabians.

An American researcher, Evan F. Kohlmann, put together a list of more than 235 names of jihadists who have died in Iraq since last summer, and he found that more than 50 percent were Saudi.

In recent years, the desert kingdom has spent untold millions on PR campaigns in the US, trying to improve its sullied image as home to 15 of the 19 hijackers who took part in the September 11, 2001 attacks.

But for all the smoke the Saudis have been trying to blow in Americans’ eyes, the truth remains as clear as it was four years ago: Saudi Arabia is an enemy of the West, and it is time for America to start treating it as such.

Israel’s High Court yesterday was the scene of an unintentionally revealing admission by a representative of Ariel Sharon’s government.

The Court convened to examine the issue of whether the 30 synagogues still standing in Gaza should be destroyed, as Sharon would like to do, despite opposition by Israel’s Chief Rabbis and other prominent people.

During the hearing, Chief Justice Aharon Barak asked the state attorney why no agreement was reached with the Palestinians regarding the need to protect the synagogues, to which the state representative replied:

“Even if the Palestinian Authority would take it on itself (to guard the synagogues), it couldn’t live up to such a commitment”.

Hmmmm. Now that’s an interesting argument, if only because it points to the utter absurdity of the Government’s position. For while Sharon is willing to admit that the Palestinians are incapable of protecting synagogues in Gaza – he was only too happy to turn over the entire Strip to Palestinian control in the hopes that they will control rocket attacks against Israel.

Logical? Hardly. If the Palestinians can not be relied upon to live up to their word, then why on earth was Sharon willing to hand them more territory?

And if they can not be trusted to respect the right of a Jewish house of worship to exist in their midst, then why does anyone think they will ever truly respect the right of a Jewish state to do so?

The government’s follies grow stranger by the day.

It's time for a reality check.

Israel’s government seems stuck in a state of cognitive dissonance, oblivious to the internal contradictions of its own policies.

Take a look at the following news item from yesterday’s Yediot Aharonot:

Handover of West Bank towns on hold

Cabinet decides to freeze handover of three more West Bank cities, Sharon and Abbas expected to meet soon to discuss possible coordination on Israel's plan to quit the Gaza Strip; Israel also gearing up to free 400 Palestinian prisoners it promised to release as part of efforts to promote peacemaking
By Attila Somfalvi and Ali Waked

The Security Cabinet decided Wednesday to freeze the transfer of three more West Bank cities promised to Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas until the Palestinian leader carries out reforms within his security forces and makes stronger efforts to stop terror. 

And so, on the one hand, Israel is refraining from turning over territory to the Palestinians in Judea and Samaria (and rightly so) because they are not fighting terror.

And yet, the government is still intent on handing over Gaza to Palestinian control.

Does this make any sense? Why retreat from Gaza and give the Palestinians free reign to create a rogue terrorist state if – by the government’s own admission – they aren’t doing anything to stop anti-Israel violence?

Perplexed? You’re not the only one.

But worst of all – it seems our government is the one that is most confused.

This past week, over 200,000 Israelis visited the Jewish communities in Gaza and northern Samaria that are slated for expulsion.

This massive show of support should serve as encouragement to us all - the people of Israel have not forsaken their Land, even if their government has.

The struggle for Gush Katif and northern Samaria is far from over - and, as I suggest in the article below - if we employ some good ol' fashioned "people power" together with faith, then we can and will prevail.

Shabbat Shalom and Happy Passover.

The Jerusalem Post, April 28, 2005

A Wall of Faith Around Gaza

By Michael Freund

These are difficult times for opponents of Ariel Sharon’s Gaza withdrawal.

Politically, Sharon has succeeded in dodging the various obstacles that stood in his path. Diplomatically, his proposal has received the “blessing” of US President George W. Bush and much of the rest of the world.

Domestically, the media stands solidly behind him. Israel’s courts are almost certain not to intervene, and local pundits and opinion-makers are backing him enthusiastically. Indeed, at this point it seems there is little standing in the way of Sharon’s plan to expel Gaza’s Jews from their homes.

Little, that is, except for faith.

Recently, a couple I know decided to move to Gush Katif. Determined to stand in solidarity with the thousands of Jews living under threat of expulsion, they left behind a comfortable villa, friendly neighbors and familiar surroundings, and moved into a tiny caravan, together with their numerous, and rather boisterous, children.

The father is a respected physician, and he will continue to treat his patients by commuting to and from his clinic in Jerusalem. The mother has thrown herself into the campaign against withdrawal, speaking out, raising funds and dedicating her time to protecting her family’s new home.

Why did you do it? I asked. What prompted you to move?

“We couldn’t. We just couldn’t sit back and watch”, he replied. “The pullout would endanger Israel, and we need to show the world that this land is ours”.

But what will you do, I said, if soldiers come to remove you from your home. How will you deal with such a situation?

“If they want to remove me, then I’ll chain myself to the bed,” he said, adding, “They’ll have to drag me out, but no matter what, I won’t use violence.”

How naïve, you might think. What could these people possibly hope to accomplish? The jig is up, the game is over. Perhaps they should just throw up their hands and accept defeat?

Sorry, but that is just not the Jewish way. If it was, then Israel would have closed up shop and called it quits a long time ago.

All is not lost. This game is far from over. Those who love the land of Israel and cherish it can prevent the retreat from taking place.

The first step is to reach out and help those people, like my friend the doctor, who are willing to move to Gush Katif. Over 1,000 Israelis have already done so in the past few months, and many more are reportedly in the process.

To meet the demand, long-time activist Datya Yitzhaki launched the “Minhelet Kela”, a Hebrew acronym for the Gaza Absorption Authority, which has been busy refurbishing homes, thereby enabling dozens of families to make the move and help strengthen Gush Katif.

There are numerous empty structures of all sorts throughout the area, many of which can easily be converted into living space. Yitzhaki and her colleagues, who can be reached at: eylond@ort.org.il, note that this would enable Gush Katif to absorb thousands of additional residents in the coming months, giving it a big numerical, as well as emotional, boost.

The second, and equally critical, step in blocking the withdrawal is to create a “Wall of Faith” around Gush Katif prior to the date of the planned expulsion. If tens of thousands form a passive human chain around the area, one bound together by resolve and faith, they can prevent the demolition from taking place.

In effect, it all boils down to simple arithmetic: bring as many people as possible, making it hopelessly impractical to remove them.

There are sure to be untold thousands of Israelis who will take part in this undertaking, but I think it is essential to reach out to friends and supporters abroad as well, such as US Christians, and to encourage them to come and take part in protecting Gush Katif.

The presence of large numbers of US Christians standing arm in arm with Israeli Jews in defense of G-d’s Holy Land, would send a potent message that is sure to echo through the corridors of power in Jerusalem and Washington.

In Hebrew, Gaza is referred to as “Aza”, which means ‘strength’ or ‘might’, perhaps suggesting that only if we muster within ourselves the determination to stand up for what we believe in, can we possibly merit to succeed.

Now, more than ever, this is a struggle for the integrity and the future of the Land that was given to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Anyone who believes in the Bible, and in G-d’s eternal promise to His people Israel, can not and must not remain silent.

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The writer served as an aide to former Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.