Analysis / Sharon the peacemaker

Ha'aretz ^ | 9 February 2005 | Aluf Benn

[anotherview]

Analysis / Sharon the peacemaker
By Aluf Benn

Ariel Sharon went back to Egypt yesterday after 23 years, and was received as a leader for peace. The public sulha with Hosni Mubarak was a lot more than just a meeting between two leaders, both former generals, who up until recently squabbled in public.

The Egyptian president received Sharon as a legitimate leader, with equal rights, a member of the club of regional leaders. Sabra and Chatila was erased; everyone focused on the future.

One of the veteran Israeli delegates who has seen many a summit and peace conference did say "the circus is repeating itself," and indeed, the four-way summit was reminiscent of many past affairs. The speeches about hopes for "our children and grandchildren" could have been taken whole from past speeches.

Nevertheless, there was something different about yesterday's summit...

[anotherview]

I believe Mr. Benn has this right. No great breakthrough has happened but both sides gained a way to stop the violence without making big new concessions. Both Sharon and Abbas have to get their internal houses in order.

Ha'aretz right twice in one day? Maybe the world is ending.

[pissant]

Maybe those Bush phone calls to Mubarik are paying off.

[anotherview]

Maybe. It is clear that the President is trying to build a pro-Western Arab alliance among the more moderate nations. He also clearly wants to push reform and democracy in he region. All good things but the ongoing conflict was in the way.

Nothing has been solved. As Mr. Benn pointed out all this summit did was change the image of the two leaders and give them a chance to sort things out at home. If it means the end to violence even for a short time it's a positive thing for Israel, for the Palestinians, and for American plans for the region.

[Nachum]

Where is the peace?

IDF Fires at Four Suspected Terrorists Near Atzmona
16:55 Feb 09, '05 / 30 Shevat 5765

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=76670

Hamas Terrorist Shot Dead – Attack Averted
16:30 Feb 09, '05 / 30 Shevat 5765

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=76669

No Injuries in N. Shomron Attack
10:32 Feb 09, '05 / 30 Shevat 5765

(IsraelNN.com) Enemy gunmen opened fire this morning on an IDF position west of the town of Kadim, in northern Samaria. There were no injuries or damage reported

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=76652

[anotherview]

Give Abbas a chance to act. If he fails to this whole thing will be dead within a week or two and nothing will change.

I am not expecting change, BTW. I just want to see if change is even possible.

[E Rocc]

If peace breaks out, INN/Arutz won't report it. They are the propaganda arm of the no-compromise nationalists.

-Eric

[Nachum]

They will report it. They won't trust it, they might put their spin on it, but they will report it. They are no less and no more slanted than the liberal/left news outlets in Israel.

[E Rocc]

They will report it. They won't trust it, they might put their spin on it, but they will report it. They are no less and no more slanted than the liberal/left news outlets in Israel.

Even if this process works, there will be isolated incidents for years. I suspect INN/AS will focus on those, and ignore the fact that they have dropped dramatically in frequency and severity.

Right now, Ha'aretz and J-Post are pretty much reporting the same things, which seems very positive. Meanwhile INN/AS wallows in the negative....as long as said negative supports their views.

-Eric

[thoughtomator]

Um, what exactly does Israel have to get in order in its house? It seems pretty clear that the only side that needs to order itself is the chaotic and fractious Arab side. Israel is a nation that adheres to the rule of law, and that's the very definition of being in order.

[Nachum]

Even if this process works, there will be isolated incidents for years. I suspect INN/AS will focus on those, and ignore the fact that they have dropped dramatically in frequency and severity.

And Ha'Aretz will focus on "The Process" if many more people are murdered.

Ha'aretz and J-Post are pretty much reporting the same things, which seems very positive. Meanwhile INN/AS wallows in the negative....

And ignoring much of the news that is reported by INN/AS. One should read it all.

[E Rocc]

And ignoring much of the news that is reported by INN/AS. One should read it all.

There's a difference between reading and trusting. AS has an agenda and it spins its coverage accordingly. Their role is comparable to that of CBS News during the election in that regard.

-Eric

[Nachum]

And Ha'aretz which has been caught in outright lies can be trusted?

You are more trusting than I.

[E Rocc]

And Ha'aretz which has been caught in outright lies can be trusted?

When?

One look at AS's main page today makes its agenda clear.

-Eric

[SJackson]

If you'd like to be on this middle east/political ping list, please FR mail me.

[Nachum]

When?

Here are a few:

Ha’aretz Refuses to Correct Prominent Front Page Error
http://www.camera.org/index.asp?x_context=2&x_outlet=55&x_article=850

Ha'aretz Prints CAMERA Letter, But No Correction
http://www.camera.org/index.asp?x_context=2&x_outlet=55&x_article=845

CAMERA Column: Fast and Loose with Facts at Ha'aretz
http://www.camera.org/index.asp?x_context=2&x_outlet=55&x_article=804

Levy claimed that Golda Meir “said that after what the Nazis did to us, we can do whatever we want.”

Challenged for a source for the virulent quote, Levy acknowledged in an Aug. 12 e-mail he had none.

--------------------------

Just a few items from CAMERA. There are others, cited by other sites you might impeach because of an even greater right wing bias, but these are factual errors they caught them with. Sort of "with their pants down".

Finally, here is a correction that Ha'Aretz did make, but it is almost Freudian to read it.-

Error (Ha'aretz Magazine, Gideon Levy, 1/21/05): Have you ever stopped for a moment next to a sign that leads to the Ofer camp, a euphemism for a mass detention facility in which about 800,000 Palestinians are now imprisoned, most of them without trial?

Correction (On Web site as of 1/28/05, not corrected in print): Have you ever stopped for a moment next to a sign that leads to the Ofer camp, a euphemism for a mass detention facility in which about 800 Palestinians are now imprisoned, most of them without trial?

[anotherview]

If you read the article you know what Prime Minister Sharon has to get in order. Likud has basically split into two parties. Sharon must deal with the rebels, either by bringing them back into the fold or purging them. The extremists among the settlers and their supporters who advocate violence also have to be dealt with.

[anotherview]

I've been reading the exchange between you two and have decided that you are both right. Neither Arutz Sheva nor Ha'aretz can be trusted. Both have spin. Both have an agenda. Ha'aretz is slightly less obvious about it, but only slightly.

I am looking forward to Yediot in English on the web. I may, in the meanwhile, have to start trusting my translation ability more. Articles from Yediot, Hafoze, and Ma'ariv are better than from either source you are arguing about.

The Jerusalem Post is moderate and mainstream and isn't bad at all, but it is a single source. Globes is excellent for business news but doesn't cover much else.

[Nachum]

I like to go to Arutz Sheva as it is many times the only voice that the people in Yesha have. Also, for that matter orthodox Jews in Israel too. If they were factually incorrect, they would have been taken to task for it every time. I have no problem citing their reports of terrorism as it happens.

[anotherview]

Arutz Sheva is not the voice of the economic settler and they are by far the majority. It is the voice of the ideological yeshuvim. It is the voice of the extreme.

Orthodox Jews cover the entire political spectrum from pretty far left (think Meimad) to far right. Arutz Sheva is hardly representative of the Orthodox as a whole. I will remind you that Shas sat in coalitions led by Prime Ministers Rabin, Peres, and Barak. Mafdal was also part of Barak's coalition. Agudat Yisrael is part of the current coalition.

[Nachum]

I am in broad contact with the orthodox communities in Los Angeles and New York. This includes those who have extensive familial and communal ties to Yesha and the orthodox community in Israel and I would disagree that Arutz 7 is the "extreme". The government tried to shut them out and then shut them down and failed. They happen to have a great deal of support.

As far as Shas and Agudas Israel are concerned, I am not sure I would combine them in some sort of group that finds no interest in what is broadcast on Arutz Sheva for the same reasons. There are many in these groups who find news and information on Arutz 7 they cannot get in other places.

As far as Rabin is concerned, I remember the orthodox community gnashing their teeth over over his treatment of those who objected to his policies. I also sat in lectures with representatives of those who were beaten by police thugs at his behest. So what if orthodox parties are forced into coalitions with the likes of Barak. That hardly means that they wanted his policies. They joined out of necessity to have any voice at all.