By Stan Goodenough
Sep 18, 2007
Gaza's Arabs Monday kept up what has for years been a steady stream of lies and false propaganda aimed at defaming the IDF and adding layer-upon-layer of tarnish to Israel's image.
The latest charge was to accuse Israeli soldiers of killing an unarmed teenager and then refusing to allow "Palestinian" medical teams to retrieve the body.
According to the IDF, the Arab was an armed terrorist who had opened fire on the soldiers. He had been killed by return fire, and Arab medics had been allowed to collect the corpse.
Largely due to the traditionally pro-"Palestinian" press bias, Israel's assertions are frequently doubted and incidents like these almost always leave the Jewish state holding the short end of the stick.
The latest demonization effort comes as the Israel Defense Forces is fighting to clear its name from the particularly vicious blood-libel known as the "Mohammed al- Dura" killing.
According to the Associated Press, the IDF has asked a French television network to turn over unedited footage of the shooting death of the 12-year-old on September 30, 2000.
Reported The Jerusalem Post's Caroline Glick: "After its exclusive broadcast that day, France 2 offered the edited film free of charge to all media outlets. The footage, and the story of the purported IDF killing of al-Dura, was quickly rebroadcast around the world.
"Within days, al-Dura became a symbol of the Palestinian war against Israel. His name has been repeatedly invoked by terrorists and their supporters as a justification for killing Israelis, Jews and their Western supporters."