Posted on 03/06/2002 2:29:23 PM PST by Cinnamon Girl
SHOULD THE U.S. SHOW THE VIDEO TAPE, MADE BY THE TERRORISTS, OF DANIEL PEARL'S MURDER?
IF THE PEARL FAMILY GIVES PERMISSION? IF IT IS SHOWN ON LATE NIGHT TELEVISION?
Connie Chung described the tape as follows:
KARACHI, Pakistan (CNN) -- Slain American journalist Daniel Pearl discussed his Jewish heritage and made propaganda statements, under apparent duress, on a roughly produced videotape that also contained violent footage of his death.
CNN Correspondent Connie Chung viewed a copy of the videotape Tuesday. The tape included a direct threat to target other Americans if the demands of Pearl's kidnappers aren't met.
The original videotape was sent to Pakistani authorities last week, who turned it over to U.S. officials. The copy, which lasted three minutes and 15 seconds, was more than 30 seconds shorter than the original videotape, but sources authenticated it as consistent with the original.
The tape began with the Wall Street Journal reporter saying, "My name is Daniel Pearl. I'm a Jewish-American. My father is Jewish. My mother is Jewish. I am a Jew." Then, looking at the camera, he recounted numerous family visits to Israel and noted that a street in a town in Israel was named after his great-grandfather, who was one of the founders of the town.
Pearl's kidnappers had accused him of being an agent for the CIA and for the Mossad, Israel's intelligence agency. The Wall Street Journal and the U.S. government adamantly denied that he was a spy.
Following the discussion of Pearl's heritage, there was a clear edit in the tape. Pearl can be seen looking at the camera and struggling to make statements from memory.
"Not knowing anything about my situation, not being able to communicate with anybody, and only now do I think about some of the people in Guantanamo Bay. They must be in a similar situation, and I have come to realize that this is the sort of problem that Americans are going to have anywhere in the world now," he said.
Among the demands Pearl's kidnappers had made is that Pakistani nationals being held by the U.S. military at the Guantanamo Bay base in Cuba be released. The detainees are associated with the al Qaeda network and the deposed Taliban government of Afghanistan.
Pearl then looked off camera and makes this statement: "We can't be secure, we can't walk around free, as long as our government policies are continuing and we allow them to continue."
There is another clear edit in the tape, and Pearl then is shown saying, "We as Americans cannot continue to bear the consequences of our government's actions, such as the unconditional support of the state of Israel."
In the tape, Pearl does not appear to have been beaten. In some segments, his hair is mussed, while in others, it is slicked back.
The section of the videotape where Pearl is seen speaking lasts about 90 seconds. As he speaks, pictures of bodies and funerals and words, such as "Afghanistan," are superimposed on the screen.
According to Chung, that portion of the tape is then followed by a 50-second section containing graphic scenes of violence against Pearl.
"I will not describe [the violent scenes] out of respect to Daniel Pearl and his family," Chung said.
Other sources who have viewed the tape said the it shows Pearl being stabbed and decapitated, although it is unclear whether he was still alive at the time. His body has not been found.
After the violence sequence, a picture of Pearl appears on the tape with a title -- National Movement for the Restoration of Pakistan's Sovereignty -- superimposed on the screen. That group claimed responsibility for Pearl's kidnapping.
The group's demands then scroll from the bottom to the top of the screen, including demands that Pakistanis at Guantanamo be released, that the U.S. presence in Pakistan end and that F-16 fighters -- which Pakistan purchased from the United States but never received -- be delivered.
The tape ends with a threat that if these demands aren't met, what happened to Pearl could happen to other Americans in Pakistan.
1. PAKISTANI AUTHORITIES BELIEVE THE VIDEO TAPE WILL BE SOLD ON THE STREETS OF PAKISTAN (AND MAY ALREADY BE.)
2. OMAR SHEIKH'S LAWYERS ARE ALREADY CLAIMING THAT THE VIDEO IS A FAKE.
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
I agree ---the American people should know what we're up against, they need to know exactly what it is those mobs of Muslims in the streets are celebrating and that they mean it when they say "death to all Jews" and "death to Americans". It's horrible but it's better to know the truth sooner rather than later.
Of course, that process of sanitizing has made it easy for the normal citizen to quickly forget what happened on 9/11, and pretend that life is all back to "normal," when in fact we are in a war that is bound to be long, bloody, and very possibly fought in our country.
If the tape is made public, I will watch it, and so should you, because it our duty to know the enemy we face. We must witness their acts, even the ones that are heinous and animalistic. To wash away their crimes because we're too cowardly to face what they are, and what they do... will be the natural outcome, if we don't watch... Because it'll be easier to forget, to forgive these bloodthirsty bastards.
Whether I see it or not, I will NOT forget. The video will simply put an exclamation point onto that fact.
Why? To forever burn into my consciousness the barbarity and evil of our enemies.
I never want to forget their true nature as demonstrated by these atrocities against innocents.
If Connie Chung can handle it, I can handle it. Makes me furious to think that these elites think they can handle the truth, but we can't.
But I bet my reaction will be alot different than Ms. Chung's. Hers is likely one of fear. Mine will be cold resolve...cold fury...and a lifelong determination to fight these demonized Islamicists to the death.
ROFLOL ... west meets east!
Perhaps the video does need to be shown so that people who aren't outraged can watch it and never forget.
You're right, I think video of the 9/11 attack on America should be shown on a regular basis. Everytime I see it, I get the exact devastating feeling I had that day. People are becoming complacent, and it will probably take another major attack to give us the resolve we need to finish the war on terrorism. As to un-sanitized post-attack video or still pictures, try to find any on the net, it is not there. As unpleasant as it may be, it might be just what many Americans need to make them realize "what", not who we are dealing with.
I'm still waiting for his apology.
I think it should be made available for the public, but NOT aired privately, so that those that want to view may do so. It would be VERY offensive to a lot of folks it aired publicly. And it would adversely affect children and other folks for life I think.
Showing it on TV would hopefully change the minds of those who don't think we are doing the right thing by going after these people. I say show it.
So did I, some time ago. It was a brutally horrible act ... but it is what those people do, and then video it to insure that they feed on their own cruelty and as an effort to weaken the resolve of those whom they fight ... us.
While I would not suggest it for all ... I do believe a lot more people need to realize what barbarity and cruelity we are fighting against. For this reason, I believe the Pearle video being available to those who would view it with disceation is not a bad thing.
We need to be steeled in our resolve.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.