What can one say but shake one's head at the actions of the Israelis - who claim to be the only democracy in the Middle East - when it bars reporters from Gaza and reporting on the present war....
The Guardian reports:
"Plans to allow journalists into Gaza were aborted yesterday after Israel's military said it was too dangerous to keep staff at the Erez passenger terminal to allow people to cross into the besieged territory.
Israel argues that excluding the international media from Gaza is helpful because foreign journalists are unethical and biased in their reporting.
Foreign journalists are "unprofessional" and take "questionable reports at face value without checking", said Danny Seaman, who heads Israel's government press office, which vets and issues permits to foreign correspondents.
Seaman said it was not Israel's responsibility to give foreign media access to Gaza. "They should have been there in the first place," before Israel began restricting access on 6 November, said Seaman. "We are not going to endanger the lives of our people just to let journalists in."
Israel began restricting media access to Gaza after the six-month ceasefire with Hamas began unravelling on 4 November. But a high court challenge by the Foreign Press Association resulted in a compromise in which eight members of the media were to be allowed in when the Erez crossing was opened for humanitarian reasons.
During the case the military had told the court it was too dangerous to allow journalists in.
Under the agreed arrangement, aborted yesterday, the FPA was allowed to select six journalists by lottery and submit the names to Israel for vetting. Israel selected the other two journalists.
In this first pool it chose people from NBC and Fox news, which is pro-Israel".
The Guardian reports:
"Plans to allow journalists into Gaza were aborted yesterday after Israel's military said it was too dangerous to keep staff at the Erez passenger terminal to allow people to cross into the besieged territory.
Israel argues that excluding the international media from Gaza is helpful because foreign journalists are unethical and biased in their reporting.
Foreign journalists are "unprofessional" and take "questionable reports at face value without checking", said Danny Seaman, who heads Israel's government press office, which vets and issues permits to foreign correspondents.
Seaman said it was not Israel's responsibility to give foreign media access to Gaza. "They should have been there in the first place," before Israel began restricting access on 6 November, said Seaman. "We are not going to endanger the lives of our people just to let journalists in."
Israel began restricting media access to Gaza after the six-month ceasefire with Hamas began unravelling on 4 November. But a high court challenge by the Foreign Press Association resulted in a compromise in which eight members of the media were to be allowed in when the Erez crossing was opened for humanitarian reasons.
During the case the military had told the court it was too dangerous to allow journalists in.
Under the agreed arrangement, aborted yesterday, the FPA was allowed to select six journalists by lottery and submit the names to Israel for vetting. Israel selected the other two journalists.
In this first pool it chose people from NBC and Fox news, which is pro-Israel".
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