Berating his fellow journalists, Gideon Levy has said, 'The majority of the Israeli media has betrayed its mission and its professionalism in favour of denial, cover-up and enlistment in the service of propaganda. 5
Israel has not allowed journalists into Gaza except for several carefully controlled embedded visits. They did not want them to see what was taking place there. At the time of writing, ninety-five Palestinian journalists and media workers have been killed in Gaza.
Under cover of war, violence in the West Bank and eastern Jerusalem has increased dramatically. Between 7 October 2023 and 3 January 2024, 313 Palestinians, including eighty children, have been killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. According to Haaretz, the new protocol for the arrest of wanted persons is to encircle the home,call the suspect to exit the premises and, if he does not emerge, shoot an anti-tank missile at the building.
As the extent of the deaths and damage caused in Gaza became more evident I wondered where were the Israeli people and the voices of reason and compassion who had taken to the streets after the Sabra and Shatila massacres in Lebanon in 1982? Not a whimper. I asked one Israeli friend why and he answered sadly, 'Israel then was a different country.'
I should have known this, especially after reading the results of the latest Peace Index from Tel Aviv University. According to the survey, 94 per cent of Jews, and 82 per cent of the total population in Israel, think the Israel Defense Forces have used the right amount (or not enough) firepower in Gaza. Three-quarters of all Israelis think the number of Palestinians harmed in the course of the war is justified to achieve their aims; fully two-thirds of Jewish respondents say the casualties are definitely