In two and a half hours of coverage BBC News has interviewed the Israeli government spokesman and covered live an Israeli government press conference, while reporters have set out at length the Israeli government view of events nine times. There has been no attempt to interview anyone from the convoy organisers, from the Turkish government, or from the Palestinians, and no expression of scepticism or even reserve by any reporter about the Israeli version of events.
A BBC journalist has stated – quite wrongly – that the blockade of Gaza is legal, and there has been no mention of the fact that it is illegal to board a foreign ship in international waters.
UPDATE BBC producres refuse to put up any interviewee except from the Israeli propaganda regime. The Israeli command on the 10am news was the worst example yet. But my warm congratulations to the female anchor who, despite this backroom manipulation, cut across his mendacity. I fear her career may be damaged.
What I cannot understand is that given the previous history of humanitarian aid convoys and the constant harrassment metted out to them, that not one single nation could support these vessels until they reached their destination.
How come such clandestine acattack was possible without any protection offered to these vessels, after all they were not breaking an official blockade, just one imposed.
Please do not let this rest, write to your respective conservative friend of Israel and complain.
I’m sure a spokesman from the Conservative Friends of Israel will be along to explain it all
The most powerful tool in the Israeli bag of propaganda tricks is the timidity of the BBC, which has again shown itself today as an apologist for Israeli state terrorism.
The other tricks are outlined in the article below.
http://www.counterpunch.org/leas05282010.html
I woke up to the Today programme on Radio 4. I wasm’t wide awake but I think it was James Humphreys who was interviewing an Israeli spokesman. Although he was the only person being interviewed so far as I could tell, he was being asked some pertinent questions e.g. the interviewer gave the crdentials of some people involved in the convoy (Mairead Corrigan, an 85-year-old concentration camp survivor) and quoted from U.N. reports on Gaza). The Israeli representative certainly wasn’t given an easy time. I assume you were watching the TV news. I don’t always like the way the Today programme deals with issues but I thought this was well done within a tight time frame (there may be something I’ve missed as I’m no expert). Presumably the interview I heard will become available on the BBC’s Listen Again service shortly.
I’ve worked with freegaza campaign, and always been amazed how little coverage these boat trips receive.
Press prefer to devote time and inches to political titbits, rather than publisise such a force of people power.
Free Gaza campaigns are well planned, organised. Activists are prepared for possibility of attack, remaining unarmed out of principle – yet optimistic of eventual goal.
The Israeli blockade, military attack, suppression of Gaza welfare are illegal. It is time the media paid attention. The tragic murders are perhaps selacious enough for that to begin.
I think what I caught was the interview with Mark Regev at 8.10 at http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_8714000/8714083.stm . I didn’t catch Rosemary Hollis.
There was an interview with a convoy organiser on Today, she made it clear that there was no way firearms could have been aboard.
Looks like someone has pulled the previous video.
Nothing like hiding the evidence, eh.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/05/201053133047995359.html
There was no time this morning to cover the murders in detail on the BBC because of important news about Facebook and hanging gardens.
John Humphries interview with that Israeli state apologist was the usual BBC disgrace.
This is the same Israeli state apologist who was given an easy ride by the BBC whilst defending the slaughter of Gaza.
It’s very clear now that the BBC is a fellow travellor and colluder in Israeli state terrorism, which only continues to get worse and worse the more they get away with.
Amusingly the Sky interview with the same Israeli state apologist was tougher. That how bad the BBC one was.
sounds like stephen nolan tackling it now on 5live.
‘I Just Can’t Believe This Is Happening’
I can.
Israeli government is out of control.
Germany does maintain a close joint submarine and submarine weapons development program with Israel.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=19433
Cameron, Gove and his stoolies are CFI boys. Their likely response will have to be ok with them first. Along the lines of “Israel has a right to defend herself” “Herself” Israel is not a human, and i wish aholes would stop referring to that. When do the brainwashed wake up. Many never will. A holocaust against the native population. Thats what it is. Never again is a word that refers to a certain group.
With the flotilla massacre victims comprising foreign nationals from several nations including Greece,Turkey and Ireland we can only hope these countries will take measures appropriate to punish the perpetrators.
With 80% Tory MPs signed up to CFI and Cameron and Hague slavishly in thrall to the Zionists the BBC coverage likely anticipates what we can expect from the UK government.
However Stuart Littlewood seems to believe Clegg can make a difference in view of his previous statements on the Israeli blockade, treatment meted out to the Palestininians of Gaza and the pariah state’s breaches of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
Currently the silence is deafening.
http://www.redress.cc/stooges/slittlewood20100515
Just listened to Stephen Nolan’s “discussion” on R5.
In one corner we had the wife of one of those onboard explaining quite calmly and rationally what every normal human being knows about the evil of Israeli activities in Gaza and elsewhere.
Nolan has no answer to any of this.
He reads out a stupid email from someone who says that Israel is just defending itself.
The wife asks what is Israeli defending itself from.
Nolan remains silent.
Nolan then reads out Israeli spokesman Mark Regev’s usual litany of lies and propaganda.
The wife counters his every lie.
Nolan runs off to “discuss” some other matter.
That’s how the BBC works.
It’s left to wives from the Isle of Wight to challenge mighty Israel.
The BBC is afraid.
I’d say we should get rid of loud mouthy but ultimately empty vessels like Nolan and spend OUR money on ordinary sensible people like the wife from the Isle of Wight.
What did Israel think they would gain from this action apart from international condemnation and an increase in terrorist action.
As the Israeli economy is doing rather well from the military/security complex… one wonders if such actions are deliberate to increase strife and profits.
and now we go over to a former Israeli commander to find out how Israeli commandos would have approached the incident.
hmm, impartial!?!
i cannot believe also that we have no immediate condemnation from our new goverment,its been known for weeks these ships have been checked and registered by the turkish goverment aswell as bieng occupied by a range of nationalities.the suggestion that the idf was attacked by terrorist elements aboard is nothing short of ridiculious.this is a blatant act of murder and piracy in international waters against civillians.how much longer must we see these acts of terrorism by isreal played out in our living rooms before us as a nation take a stand against the hippocracy of goverment?all the talk of violations and sanctions when speaking about iran is ANOTHER prelude to war against a country with oil.all the time the us and uk condone the behaviour of isreal?
what really is happening in the world today when any suggestion of this is labelled anti-semetic?
The BBC is a Regime mouth piece. And the British government’s position is dictated by Israel.
There were of course British people on the convoy. Some from Bristol – http://is.gd/cwJMy – probably others. The government will need to make a statement about them at least.
Pete
I heard the BBC WS reports on the Gaza tunnel explosion in which 6 people died.
The tunnels are for ‘Smuggling’ and were built apparently when ‘Hamas took control of the Gaza strip’
The implication clearly being the dead were involved in the criminal act of ‘Smuggling’ and Hamas somehow took control rather than being democratically elected.
I have hated the BBC for a long time now they take our money and use it to feed us ruling class propaganda.
I am horrified too that Israel can nuclear bombs, perform piracy, perform genocide and there appears to be nothing in the Mainstream Media. We are living in a cross between Orwell’s 1984 and a Brave New World.
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)= Israeli Broadcasting Corporation (IBC).
Pete if Israel kill a million british people in Britian itself the government will not make a comment about it except for maybe asking Tel Aviv for clarification.
so the state broadcaster bbc does what the govt mandates.
why the shock?
the bbc has a policy of news blackout (wrt mid east/iran/pak etc)and only confronts an issue if it cannot do otherwise and has to make a policy statement on behalf of the neo con pro war govt lobby.
The video has been removed for some reason.