Demonize Israel in 60 minutes!

     On Sunday April 22, 2012 CBS ran a new “60 minutes” segment titled “Christians of the Holy Land”.  
     The decision to air the piece right between Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day) and Yom Ha’atzmaut (Israel Independence Day) made me wonder if the date hadn’t been selected to further an already damaging agenda of demonization of Israel.
     As I watched the piece, I couldn’t help but reminisce on the days when “60 minutes” was drawing viewers because of its unbiased professional reporting of world events…Days long gone apparently! Instead, Bob Simon unashamedly presented a “victimized” community of “Palestinian Christians” suffering undeserved hardships at the hands of the “Occupiers” of Palestine i.e.: Israel. The segment still attracted 13 million American viewers.
     This had got to be one of the most biased piece I have seen in a long time. As I try to keep my finger on the pulse of global antisemitism, I have read and heard a lot of diatribes being dispensed and I have come to expect these kind of stories from Radical Muslims, liberals and unfortunately, even some evangelical Christians. I would expect a show like “60 minutes” to cover such a controversial topic as the Middle East crisis, but not to go on a witch hunt like they did.
     Fortunately, it didn’t take long for many voices of protest to be heard. They came from both sides of the pro-Israel camp: The Jewish Community and the Evangelical community. Incidentally, being pro-Israel doesn’t necessarily mean that one is anti-Palestinian, which is hardly ever true the other way around!
     A third into the report, Bob Simon interviewed a Palestinian Lutheran minister who claims that:“The only thing that Palestine has been able to export successfully was Christianity” and further down, he adds:“Christianity has actually on the back a stamp that says ‘Made in Palestine'”. The only time the word “Israel” is ever mentioned, is to describe the “occupiers” or “wall builders”.
     Then, Bob Simon continues by making a statement that the viewers have no choice but to accept as undeniable fact: “Israel has occupied the West Bank for 45 years”. Even though most of the world already supports the “Palestinian underdogs”, no other view is even remotely offered as a possible alternative to the land issue.    Honest reporting was not on the agenda, taking sides was!
     Where was the mentioning of Hamas, Fatah, Hizbullah and the treatment of Palestinian Christians by Palestinian Muslims? NOWHERE in the piece! As the implementation of Sharia Law continues to grow in the Middle East (and globally as well) as a result of the Arab Spring, dhimmitude will increase and freedom will decrease as Radical Islam perniciously injects its barbaric ideology into western civilization. NONE OF THAT was reported, even though it is an integral part of the problem at hand!
     Simon spent quite a bit of time reporting on the security fence or “wall” which was built over the last decade and separates Israel from the West Bank. To my surprise, he accurately added:” The wall was built to stop Palestinian terrorists from getting into Israel, and it’s worked, terrorism has gone down 90%”. But he immediately followed by quoting West Bank residents in calling the area an “open air prison”.
     I do find it very unfortunate that this wall had to be erected in the first place, separating people and rendering daily activities of Palestinians very difficult to say the least. Yet, with a success rate of 90% against terrorism, who would even consider not having a wall? In all fairness, we must not forget that the wall is as much of an eyesore from the kitchen window of a Palestinian in the West Bank as it is from the kitchen window of an Israeli from the other side.
     Towards the end of his report, Simon quotes a document called “Kairos Palestine” apparently drafted and endorsed by a group of Christian activists, and supposedly denouncing Islamic extremism and promoting “non-violent resistance” to Israeli occupation. Upon further reading of the 16 page declaration, it is rather obvious that, as it was penned in the spirit of ecumenism, and was also very one-sided towards Palestinians, thus eradicating all negative connotations about Palestinian Terrorism and promoting violence under the cloack of peaceful resistance. Consider what message they promote on their site as you watch this short promo video for BDS (Boycott, Divestments and Sanctions).
     The piece finishes with a bold rebuke of Israeli Ambassador to the US, Michael Oren by Bob Simon. At that point, Simon criticizes Ambassador Oren for contacting CBS ahead of airing the “60 minutes” segment. Simon claims that in all of his years of news anchoring, never was CBS asked to reconsider the airing of a show by somebody who “hadn’t yet seen it”. Ambassador Oren appeared to have information leading him to believe that the show wouldn’t be a fair portrayal of both sides of the issue, so he felt compiled to contact the president of CBS, but unfortunately, he seemed caught by surprise when Simon accused him of speaking out of terms.
     What CBS and Simon promoted knowingly or not is called Christian Palestinianism and it unequivocally continues to delegitimize Israel’s right to exist and right to the Land, as it is adopted by more and more people including many evangelicals.
     Real followers of Yeshua (Jesus) cannot ignore the tension and hardships that exist in the Middle East. We cannot ignore the fact that many people are unnecessarily suffering in that region and that we must work together towards a true reconciliation meaning that both side need to be in a positive, peace seeking dialogue. Frankly, I don’t see that really happening until Yeshua (Jesus), the real Prince of Peace returns. But until then we still have a biblical obligation to love our neighbors and even to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us ( Matthew 5:44). True believers CANNOT DEMONIZE ISRAEL WITHOUT DEMONIZING GOD HIMSELF (Psalm 83:3-5):
They make shrewd plans against Thy people, And conspire together against Thy treasured ones. They have said, “Come, and  let us wipe them out  as a nation, That the  name of Israel be remembered no more.”For they have conspired together with one mind; Against Thee do they make a covenant.