Per Version Part Deux
Almost a month ago, I brought to you the three different versions of the death of palestinian man Firas Qasqas, in order to show you the palestinian preoccupation with lying.
Now, I have found yet another multi-versioned story being reported exclusively in the palestinian and Arab media.
Version 1: Ma’an News
A Palestinian civilian died last night in the West Bank village of Qibya, of wounds sustained after an Israeli settler ran him over on the bypass road near the village of Ni’lin west of Ramallah, local sources said.
The sources said that 27-year-old Wasfi Al-Khatib sustained was seriously injured on Saturday evening after an Israeli car ran him over near the Hashmon’in settlement. They added that the man was transferred to the governmental hospital in Ramallah where he later died.
The incident came hours after two off-duty Israeli soldiers from the Qiriyat Arba settlement near Hebron were killed. Right wing settlers threatened to take revenge on Palestinians.
Version 2: Alalam
Furthermore, an Israeli settler ran over a Palestinian by his car in a village located northwest of Ramallah in a move widely speculated to be intentional.
Twenty-one year old Vasfi al-Kahtib succumbed to his severe injuries, before being taken to a nearby hospital in the West Bank, Palestinian medics said.
Kahatib was a resident of Nalin village near the Zionist-occupied Moadaim settlement.
Version 3: WAFA
Jewish colonizer ran over a citizen in the West Bank city of west Ramallah, local sources said.
The sources told WAFA that Wasfi al-Khateeb 21, died on Sunday due to his serious wounds as an extremist colonizer deliberately ran over him as he was heading home in the village of Na’alin.
Version 4: Indian Muslims
RAMALLAH, Dec 30 (KUNA) — A Palestinian citizen was deliberately killed on Sunday when an Israeli settler ran him over in Qabiya, near Ramallah.
Ramallah Hospital sources said the victim was identified as Wasfi Al-Khateeb, 25, who succumbed to serious injuries. An Israeli settler was driving his car towards Al-Khateeb and “deliberately” hit him, stressed eyewitnesses.
Bypasses constructed by the Israelis back in 1994 after the Oslo Agreement to secure settlers’ movements at certain points intersect with roads leading to Palestinian towns. Settlers often block these roads.
Settlers frequently attack residents of neighboring Palestinian towns and had recently attacked and injured two Palestinians near Tal Town, adjacent to Nablus.
Once again, I’ll summarize the versions in a handy table.
| Ma’an | Alalam | WAFA | Indian Muslims | |
| Where run over | on the bypass road near the village of Ni’lin west of Ramallah | in a village located northwest of Ramallah | in west Ramallah | in Qabiya, near Ramallah |
| Age of victim | 27 | 21 | 21 | 25 |
At least they can agree that the evil Israeli/Jew settler/colonizer deliberately killed the palestinian. That lie is so predictable, it requires no coordination between the news outlets.
About the Author
An Australian immigrant to Israel, Aussie Dave has been blogging since early 2003.Filed Under: Uncategorized
I find it interesting that two of the sources also “know” that it was deliberate whereas the other two merely imply that it was.
Ma’an also reports that two Israelis were murdered before that happened.
The Indian report is the weirdest. It’s a lot more anti-Israel than the Palestinian sources (for some reason) and also reports that “settlers frequently attack” people.
It’s good to hear that the death of _one_ Palestinian in a road accident is newsworthy.
We can be proud of Israel if that sort of thing makes the news in a region where often hundreds of thousands die due to deliberate genocide, like in Sudan now and Iraq under Saddam.
That was apparently the most evil thing they could blame the Jews for this week: an Arab was run over by a car.
At least it could have been deliberate. There’s your evil Jew. Look at him!
I guess no one else commented on this but I find this series (if 2 can be called a series) pretty unconvincing.
It’s not that I think the Arab press tells the truth all the time, but the inconsistencies you point out are the sort of thing that would be found in any fairly sloppy reporting. Mixing up someone’s age from 21 to 27 could be a typo, a misreading of handwritten notes or a genuine mistake – I find it hard to attach mendacity to it.
The real problem is the blatant bias such as “Israelis regularly run over Arabs for fun and profit”, used as throwaway lines which set most of the tone of the articles.
It might be interesting if you check the major Israeli (or Australian?) newspapers for reports next time someone is killed in a car accident – mistkaes like these creep in to all papers. Private Eye used to (maybe still does) make fun of British paapers which found it necessary in every newspaper article to follow a person’s name with their age (often incorrect) – “Mr. Cohen, 47, of London was found in possession of a large bottle of water….Cohen, 43, said he found the water on the side of the road…”
Is it wise to start a NEW analysis of “What really happened”, when your FIRST is very UNFINISHED?:
http://www.israellycool.com/2007/12/04/per-version/#comments
I think it is always wise to adjust activity to capacity and capability.
- And do GOOD what you choose to do.
Querius,
The fact remains that the palestinian reports are littered with inaccuracies, as evidenced by the different versions. This calls into question the “facts” as they report them. And I link to my previous version, which has an update based on the Ha’aretz article. So what on Earth are you on about?
You are clearly trying to show some bias on my part, yet are only demonstrating yours.
Kibi,
You could be right, but I view the palestinian reports with deep suspicion, especially considering their history of bias and the throwaway lines you mentioned.
It is worth investigating them when I see these glaring errors because while they might be due to sloppy reporting, they could also be due to more nefarious reasons.
Aussie Dave said:
… “And I link to my previous version, which has an update based on the Ha’aretz article. So what on Earth are you on about?
You are clearly trying to show some bias on my part, yet are only demonstrating yours.”
……………………………………………..
Re Bias,
YOU chose to update only the IDF-version.
I think it is best show all relevant info, and THEN discuss.
I am not sure why you only give ONE side of the story. Especially when there is a widow and young children left behind.
You do not find it appropiate to dig into what will happen to them now? Do you know their age and names?
Untill you follow up your first story properly, I think you should refrain from opening new ones.
Halfdone work creates bad reputation. Bad reputation is difficult to change. It lives on and on ….
Well….it *could* be nefarious, but I think you are smart enough to think this out. What is gained from claiming 27 as opposed to 21 (or vice versa)? What is nefarious about “in the village” as opposed to “on the way to the village”.
I’m sure there are many cases where there *are* nefarious changes. Something like “walking to his home near the fence” as opposed to “trying to dig under the fence near his home” can have a world of difference. I’m just not sure you’ve highlighted the right incidents.
Kibi,
I think you are missing the point. The palestinians are quick to accuse Israel of all sorts of crimes. The fact they report on events with scant regard for the facts – even if you consider them minor things like “age” and “location” – demonstrates that these reports need to be taken with a grain of salt. The more instances of this I show, the more likely it is that this is not the odd instance of “sloppiness”, but part of a phenomenom of quickly reporting one’s own version of events.
[...] always, it seems interesting to me that something as straightforward as the killing of a palestinian child should be reported so [...]