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To: Mephisto who wrote (3752)	4/23/2002 6:14:31 PM
From: Mephisto	Respond to of 15516

Muted criticism in American newspapers Scepticism at reports of Jenin bloodbath Julian Borger in Washington Wednesday April 17, 2002 The Guardian The outcry in the European press over the killings of civilians in Jenin has not been echoed in US newspapers. Since being allowed into the West Bank town, American journalists have reported extensively on the devastation there, but the editorial pages have offered a mixed response. The New York Times has made no direct criticism of the Israeli operations, noting only that "there remained heated charges and counter-charges regarding the number of the dead and the extent of the attack's brutality". A news analysis by one of the paper's leading commentators, RW Apple, pointed out that broad support for President Bush's anti-terror policy "had dissolved on the Continent", but attributed this to European unease with its own position in the world. "In truth, Europe is still trying to adjust to a world with a single superpower, and it is having a hard time doing so," he wrote. The Washington Post has been far more outspoken against Israeli actions. In a Sunday editorial, it argued: "Israel's right to target the authors of such murderous attacks is undeniable. "But with its killings of women and children, its torture and terrorising of unarmed men and its mass destruction of the property and dignity of people in the West Bank, Mr Sharon's army is also achieving the opposite of its aim. Its brutal offensive has not and will not stop suicide bombers; it risks bringing on even more terrible bloodshed." However, a front page Washington Post report from Jenin was sceptical of reports of a bloodbath: "Interviews with residents inside the camp and international aid workers who were allowed here for the first time today indicated that no evidence has surfaced to support allegations... of large-scale massacres or executions by Israeli troops." The Los Angeles Times said in an editorial yesterday that, by barring journalists from Jenin during its offensive, Israel had scored a propaganda own goal. "By aggressively keeping reporters out of the battle zones, in some cases at gunpoint, it has assured rising suspicion and the declining sympathy that invariably accompanies such distrust." guardian.co.uk

To: Mephisto who wrote (3752)	4/23/2002 6:15:48 PM
From: Mephisto	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 15516

Israel accused over Jenin assault Red Cross and Amnesty say attack violated Geneva accords Chris McGreal in Jerusalem and Brian Whitaker Tuesday April 23, 2002 The Guardian The International Committee of the Red Cross yesterday accused Israel of breaching the Geneva conventions by recklessly endangering civilian lives and property during its assault on the Jenin refugee camp, and by refusing the injured access to medical personnel for six days. Amnesty International concurred and called for an investigation on the same basis as the war crimes inquiries in the Balkans. The allegations came as the UN secretary general, Kofi Annan, named a fact-finding team to look into the 10 days of fighting in Jenin between the Israeli military and Palestinian militants. It will be led by the former Finnish president, Martti Ahtisaari, who will be joined by Sadako Ogata, former UN high commissioner for refugees, and Cornelio Sommaruga, the ICRC's former head. The Palestinians claim that the Israeli military massacred up to 500 people in the camp. Israel says about 40 people died, plus 23 of its troops. The killing continued in other parts of the occupied territories yesterday as Israeli soldiers shot dead five Palestinians - two in Gaza and three in West Bank villages - and Palestinian militants in Ramallah shot three alleged collaborators with Israel, killing one man. The Israeli army said it arrested a 17-year-old Palestinian woman in Gaza who was on her way to carry out a suicide attack. Last night a Palestinian militia leader and a second man were killed in a helicopter attack in Hebron. The helicopter fired missiles at a car, killing Marwan Zalloum, the commander of the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade militia in the city, residents said. Palestinian security officials said he was on a list of 33 activists the Israelis asked the Palestinians to arrest several months ago. In Bethlehem, heavy gunfire erupted yesterday around the Church of the Nativity, where Israeli troops have been besieging Palestinian gunmen holed up inside in a 20-day standoff, witnesses said. A Palestinian policeman inside the compound told Reuters by telephone: "They're shooting around us from all directions." In Ramallah, the US undersecretary of state, William Burns, met Yasser Arafat for two hours yesterday, but there was no sign of an imminent end to the Israeli siege of the Palestinian leader's offices. Rene Kosirnik, the head of the ICRC delegation in the region, said there was little doubt that Israel had breached interna tional law at the Jenin camp. "When we are confronted with the extent of destruction in an area of civilian concentration, it is difficult to accept that international humanitarian law has been fully respected," he said. "What the law says is that you cannot attack or destroy civilians or civilian property. If you are in a military operation you have to take utmost care. If you suspect that your operation will cause disproportionate damage to civilians or civilian property then you have to stop the operation." Mr Kosirnik said the Israelis also blocked emergency medical aid to the camp for nearly a week after the fighting end ed, while failing to provide care to the wounded. "We were there for six days offering our services and we were refused," he said. "As long as Jenin refugee camp was occupied by the Israeli defence force, the first responsibility lies with the IDF to save lives. It is the responsibility of the force concerned to deliver services, to care for friend and foe. That is the rule." guardian.co.uk