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This week on CounterSpin: On September 17, thousands of handheld pagers exploded simultaneously across Lebanon and Syria. The next day, it was hundreds of walkie-talkies—part of an Israeli attack, intended for Hezbollah, that Israel’s defense minister called “the start of a new phase in the war.” Media dutifully reported the emerging toll of dead and wounded, including many civilians, including children. Harder to capture is the life-altering impact of such a terror attack on those it doesn’t kill.
As every day brings news of new carnage, US citizens have a duty not to look away, given our government’s critical role in arming Israel and ignoring its crimes, and in misleading us about what they know and intend. Mohamad Bazzi is director of the Hagop Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies and journalism professor at New York University, and former Middle East bureau chief at Newsday. He joins us to talk about the latest events and media response.
Transcript: ‘Western Press Obscured the Sheer Terror of What Israel Had Carried Out’
Plus Janine Jackson takes a quick look at recent press coverage of Rashida Tlaib, banned books and deportation.
To my way of thinking the terrorists have been terrorized !! In fact, it’s ingenious and will go down in history as one of the most clever and successful operations against terrorists Leave it to the Israeli Mossad to get it done right. Good triumphs over evil. Absolutely hilarious when indiscriminate blood-thirsty terrorists such has Hezbollah get all indignant when the tables turn. The attacks also exposed the identities of thousands of Hezbollah operatives, many of whom worked covertly—a coup for Israeli intelligence and a likely surprise for some Hezbollah members’ relatives and neighbors.
It’s revealing that you are laughing when fanatical Zionists commit mass murder. Your comment shows only the viciously cruel nature of your ideology. Millions of people around the world in growing numbers see Israel for the pariah state it is and always should have been since the 1948 Nakba. We will not rest until Israel is replaced by a secular democracy of equal rights.
Kudos and I love the line the “terrorists have been terrorized !”
Hezbollah has fired more than 9,000 rockets, missiles and drones into Israel since Oct. 8, according to Israel. The Israeli military struck Lebanon more than 8,000 times by air, drone, missile and artillery through Sept. 20, according to Hezbollah. What a shit show. Hezbollah (and by proxy Iran) should not have poked the bear.
Apartheid, Zionist Israel has no moral right to exist and must be replaced by a secular democracy of equal rights. Hezbollah was created because of Israel’s cruelty and expansionism – there would be no reason for it otherwise.
No right to exist huh? Interesting that you’ve had the life experiences of being able to be a Jew hater with your stream-of-consciousness insanity. Read this morning and I am thrilled to hear – the Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah – was killed in the IDF’s strike on Hezbollah’s headquarters in Beirut on Friday. He was responsible for planning and executing multiple terrorist operations over past decades, including the deaths of US Marines in Beirut Lebanon. In addition, a Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Brigadier General also died in the Israeli strike that killed Hezbollah leader, according to AP reports. I wonder what he was doing there? Do the mullahs and ayatollahs really think the free world welcomes their form of religious authoritarianism ? Do the Irian Ayatollahs pay you by the day or for each written piece ?
Israel – an apartheid, Zionist, Jewish-supremacist, hate-teaching, terroristic and fascistic state since its founding – has never had a moral right to exist. No-one need be a supporter of the repressive theocracy in Iran, nor to excuse the myriad attacks on civilians by Hezbollah or Hamas, to know this. That you don’t know it… why not? What is it about that undemocratic state that appeals to you? Is it the almost deranged levels of hatred and contempt levelled by it at the Palestinian people, which are taught to all Israeli Jews from earliest childhood? Is it the might-makes-right, peace-denying triumphalism? Why do you detest the very concept of democracy with equal rights? There is a lot you should be thinking about.
Let’s deal with facts. As the ONLY democratic elected country in the Middle East I would suggest you are a biased moron. In addition Israel was admitted to the United Nations as a full member on May 11, 1949, and has been a fully democratic country with equal rights for all its citizens from its inception until today.
Lets review, Hamas has been defanged. Hezbollah’s long time leader, Hassan Nasrallah is dead, as is much of their senior leadership. In retrospect, this outcome resulted from two big mistakes: Nasrallah and its leadership vastly underestimated Israel and then expected Iran to step up and defend them. While Hezbollah still has thousands of battle-hardened fighters and a large arsenal, Israel always seems to be one step ahead of both terrorist groups. A door to a new era has opened, in which, Iran’s influence in the Middle East is going to be significantly weakened. All good out comes.
I believe these killing show Israel’s leaders are prepared to blow past the red lines that previously defined the country’s slow-burning conflict with Hezbollah to ensure its own security.
Israel is out of control. It is answerable to no one. There is no checks and balances, in Israel actions. Their unlawful preemptive attacks against its ‘perceived’ enemies have been condemned by the Pope. Israel, the same anti-Christ who convicted Jesus the Christ, their King, of blasphemy 2,000 years ago. They will reap what they sew.
Looks like the Hasbara are earning their pay here in the ‘comments’ section with their phony pro-genocide arguments.